Milk supplies are being restricted as the scope of the contaminated animal feed scare widens, the Northern Ireland health minister said today.

Michael McGimpsey stressed that it was safe to eat beef and drink milk.

A total of eight beef herds and one beef and dairy herd in Northern Ireland have been identified as consuming tainted feed.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) last night said no pigs had eaten the potentially cancer-causing food.

Mr McGimpsey said: "One farm has been identified as having fed contaminated feed to dairy cattle.

"All milk from this farm has now been prevented from entering the food chain.

"All previous supplies of milk from this farm were sent to a single purchaser in the Republic of Ireland."