Following media outlet reports and social media outbursts regarding the decision made by Metn judge of expedited matters, Ralph Karkabi, to unload a wheat shipment that was reportedly “moldy” based on initial analysis results on a grain sample, the Office of the Higher Judicial Council issued a statement providing clarification from Judge Karkabi on the matter.
Karkabi argued that “ in order to resolve contradicting reports presented by two conflicting parties,” namely the miller and the Ministry of Agriculture, he asked the head of the Syndicate of Chemists, Jihad Abboud, to take samples of the wheat and conduct necessary analyses in specialized laboratories, including the Laboratory of Environment, Agriculture and Food at the American University of Beirut (LEAF-LAB), the Industrial Research Institute, the Department of Bacteriology at the Lebanese Agricultural Research Institute (LARI), the Agricultural Research Institute in Tal Amara, and the Ras Beirut Laboratory in Choueifat (RBML Food Labs).
“Since the analyses showed that the wheat was fit for consumption, I ordered the removal of the seals from the concerned shipment,” read the statement.
A statement issued earlier by the Consumer Association in Lebanon warning about “moldy wheat” and “carcinogenic rice” stirred panic among consumers in Lebanon. According to the statement, “24 tons of cancer-causing rice and 4,506 tons of moldy wheat would have been distributed in Lebanon, despite a decision from the relevant authorities (Ministry of Agriculture) prohibiting their placement on the market.”
Karkabi argued that “ in order to resolve contradicting reports presented by two conflicting parties,” namely the miller and the Ministry of Agriculture, he asked the head of the Syndicate of Chemists, Jihad Abboud, to take samples of the wheat and conduct necessary analyses in specialized laboratories, including the Laboratory of Environment, Agriculture and Food at the American University of Beirut (LEAF-LAB), the Industrial Research Institute, the Department of Bacteriology at the Lebanese Agricultural Research Institute (LARI), the Agricultural Research Institute in Tal Amara, and the Ras Beirut Laboratory in Choueifat (RBML Food Labs).
“Since the analyses showed that the wheat was fit for consumption, I ordered the removal of the seals from the concerned shipment,” read the statement.
A statement issued earlier by the Consumer Association in Lebanon warning about “moldy wheat” and “carcinogenic rice” stirred panic among consumers in Lebanon. According to the statement, “24 tons of cancer-causing rice and 4,506 tons of moldy wheat would have been distributed in Lebanon, despite a decision from the relevant authorities (Ministry of Agriculture) prohibiting their placement on the market.”
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