Slovakia on Friday urged retailers to stop selling meat from Poland

after veterinarians in the neighbouring Czech Republic found the dangerous salmonella bacteria in Polish imports.

"Food safety is the number one priority. I won't allow the failures of Polish authorities to endanger Slovak consumers," Slovak Agriculture Minister Gabriela Matecna said in a statement.

"Therefore, I appeal to the retailer chains to refrain from selling Polish meat."

According to a ministry spokesman, most of the retailers have promised to comply.

"Several chains have already announced that they will not sell any Polish meat. Some of them have already stopped doing so," spokesman Michal Feik told the news agency.

Slovakia imports up

to 8,000 kilogrammes (17,600 pounds) of Polish meat a month, according to Feik.

Last week, Matecna required that every Polish beef consignment pass lab tests before hitting the Slovak market.

Feik said the focus is on beef, though all meat is being checked.