A water buffalo, used for the production of buffalo mozzarella cheese, stands in a farmyard near the Campania region village of Castel Volturno in this January 19, 2008 file photo. The European Commission has asked Italy on March 26, 2008 for assurances the country's top mozzarella is safe to eat following reports some of the cheese was made with milk contaminated with the carcinogenic chemical compound dioxin.