The recent salmonella outbreak on several Finnish poultry farms has also spread to at least one pig farm located in Central Ostrobothnia, it was reported on Wednesday.
The bacteria has been found so far on at least 12 farms producing eggs. Two new cases were reported overnight.
The source of the salmonella is thought to be the same in the case of the pig farm, namely a contaminated batch of feed from Raisio Feed Ltd.
In all, the Finnish Food Safety Authority EVIRA is examining the salmonella situation at 770 poultry and pig farms around the country. One third of these are egg-producing farms.
The bulk of the chicken farms will have samples analysed by Saturday of this week, but analyses from pig farms are likely to take rather longer.
Eggs from poultry farms will not be heading to the shops before the farm has received a clean bill of health from the authorities.
In a further development of the outbreak, it was reported by YLE News that farms affected by the bacteria intend to seek hefty compensation for loss of production and livestock and the costs of disinfecting their premises.
According to Raisio Feed, the company is prepared to pay damages if so ordered. The company reports it is carrying out its own investigations into the origins of the contaminated feed.
Both farmers and feed manufacturers alike regard the EU's agricultural policies as the root cause of the problems, as they have made it unprofitable to produce protein-enriched feed in Finland, forcing the country to import feed from abroad.
