Italian food police have found ''irregularities'' at nine vineyards since a wine scare broke ten days ago, officials said Monday.
Ten wine producers have been reported to the authorities after inspections at Cremona, Mantova, Naples, Parma, Siena, Treviso and Taranto, they said.
The infractions included false or misleading labelling, failure to process waste products and using banned additives including sweeteners.
Two plants were shut down and some 16,000 bottles, labelled and ready to go onto the market, were seized.
The action followed the closure of two Taranto plants when the scare broke after a newsweekly's claims that wine had been adulterated with fertiliser and acid.
Italy has assured the European Union that the wine has only been watered down and sweetened with (beet) sugar.
The European Commission last week said it was satisfied with Italian assurances there were no health risks.
It said it was happy with Italian measures to catch culprits and counter the scare.
Police have been investigating the cheap end of the market for tainted wine. L'Espresso magazine said as much as 70 million litres of acid-adulterated products may have reached the market, priced at 70 cents to one euro.
Last week some 18 million litres were seized, police said.
But labelling irregularities have been found both on cheap and quality wine, they said.
Earlier this month it voiced assurances that Italy was coping with a tainted-mozzarella scare.
