E. coli and the tragedy of liberalised food supplies

With the E. coli death toll rising and more than 2,400 people suffering from contamination, Europe has witnessed its second "food crisis" is less than six months – the first being January's dioxin scare, when 4,700 German farms were shut. Many have called for a revision of the European Food Safety Alert System. Badly affected nations like Spain want to bring the warnings closer in line with conclusive scientific data, rather than what some critics have said amounts to guess-work.

But European Commissioner for Consumer Affairs John Dalli continues to defend the structures in place as the best way for member states "to notify their citizens about possible dangers". Although, he admits that "the question is where to draw the line, it's very easy to draw conclusions in hindsight".

Other critics, like German MEP Sabine Wils of the Confederal Group of the European United Left /Nordic Green Left suggest that the problems run deeper than premature claims that Spanish cucumbers or German beansprouts were to blame for the spread of the pathogen. Wils claims that her political peers must lift their gaze. Otherwise they will never fully grasp "the serious problems with the liberalised food production in the European Union" created by "long transport chains and the anonymous nature of production systems" – she warns.

Elaborating further, Wils says: "Traceability is essential for the safety of foodstuffs. Consumers have the right to know how their food is produced and where it comes from. We need a total rethink of agricultural policy. If profits take precedence over healthcare, this means that food security and quality suffer." Commendable sentiments indeed. But is it realistic to think that - in a globalised world - local and sustainable food production will be prioritised above the mass production, less expensive consumer prices and higher company profits resulting from the "just in time" delivery chain? The short answer is, probably not.

Then again, at least some form of change may be unavoidable. Desperate doctors in Germany have resorted to using the relatively untested drug Soliris to help those E. coli victims suffering from epileptic seizures, kidney failures and strokes. Professor Rolf Stahl of the Hamburg University Medical Centre explains that in some cases dialysis is just not the right option. "We are treating the patients with this drug because we cannot simply stand by and watch them die, suffer damage to their central nervous systems or lose their kidney function," he says.

In addition to the loss of human life - estimates of the weekly economic damage to member state agricultural sectors stand at €200m in Spain, €80m in the Netherlands, €20m in Germany, €4m in Belgium and €3m in Portugal. And Dutch Economic Minister Henk Bleker admits that "exports have come to a standstill". From these statistics, you would have to conclude that Europe can afford no more such food crises. Especially, when EU trade in fruit and vegetables is worth €2.5bn per week.

The European Commission may have proposed a €210m aid package to help farmers, but this is insufficient to compensate the industry – and it certainly will not restore consumer confidence. It is merely a sticking plaster. Piecemeal reforms and clearing up the mess after the event with compensation funding will not prevent the same sort of incident happening again. Members of the European Parliament are right to demand a "thorough investigation of what went wrong at the EU level and in Germany".

And as we move into a period of crucial negotiations on the new economic governance legislation and finalising Croatia's accession after a lengthy candidacy period of six years, the EU also has to conclude discussions on better ways of regulating its liberalised food supply system. Either that or all of us in Europe become accustomed to cooking every vegetable thoroughly and then hoping for the best. I know which my preferred option is.