150 Millions Euro for E.coli aid

Producers of salad vegetables have seen sales plummet in the outbreak, which has killed 22 people and sickened more than 2,400.

EU agriculture ministers are holding crisis talks in Luxembourg.

The EU health commissioner said the outbreak was limited to north Germany and did not need Europe-wide controls.

John Dalli also warned against releasing unproven information on the outbreak, saying it had spread fear and adversely affected farm producers.

'Regaining trust'

European agriculture commissioner Dacian Ciolos told journalists ahead of the Luxembourg talks: "I will propose 150m euros today.

"I hope that the authorities will be able to give an answer on the source of the infection as quickly as possible. Without this answer, it will be difficult to regain the trust of consumers, which is essential for the market to regain its strength."

Compensation will cover the period from late May to late June, he said, but the amount paid could change once each country's reported losses are known.

All the deaths from the outbreak, bar one in Sweden, have been in Germany. Twelve countries have been affected, with the cases outside Germany linked to travel there.