Belgium issues toxic leeks warning to thieves

Belgian police warned thieves on Friday who made off with leeks from a vegetable farm: don’t eat them — they could be toxic.

The robbers stole 440 pounds of leeks, a main ingredient of Vichyssoise soup, but police warned that the vegetables should have stayed in the ground another six weeks to be safe after treatment with toxic pesticides.

Police told consumers to beware of leeks with a strange smell which could indicate they were from the stolen batch from the farm in the West Flanders town of Izegem, Belga news agency said.