BISHKEK -- Officials of Kyrgyzstan's major gold producer, Kumtor Operating Company, have said that more than 100 of its workers have been stricken with food poisoning.
Local media report the number of poisoned workers is about 170, of which half have been hospitalized.
Officials say an investigation has been launched into the incident, saying either fruit or eggs from the mine's cafeteria might have caused the outbreak.
The Kumtor mine in the high mountains of Tian Shan near Lake Issyk-Kul in northern Kyrgyzstan accounts for more than 10 percent of the country's economy.