(PARIS) - France's agriculture minister on Friday asked shops to stop selling imported mozzarella after Italy discovered high levels of dioxin in the buffalo milk used to make the cheese.

Agriculture Minister Michel Barnier issued the order after the European Commission said late Thursday that Italy had not done enough to fight the contamination.

Barnier asked "all professionals to immediately impound the products concerned pending additional information," a statement from the agriculture ministry said.

"In the coming days and as a precautionary measure, tests will be carried out on shipments of mozzarella made with buffalo milk from Campania," said the statement.

Italian authorities said last week that high levels of dioxin, which increases the risk of cancer, were found in 66 buffalo herds around the city of Naples.

A total of 83 buffalo farms in the Naples region were quarantined.

But the European Commission said Thursday that "the measures put in place are not sufficient to ensure that no contaminated product enters the market."

On Friday, Italy announced a recall of the cheese, a move welcomed by Brussels.

In 2007, France imported 257 tonnes of buffalo mozzarella, according to figures from the dairy industry.

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