Horse Meat Labeled as Beef Found in Netherlands

AMSTERDAMOne year after a horse meat scandal rocked Europe, the continent is still finding that beef is mislabeled.

Investigators in the Netherlands have found horse meat in four shipments labeled as beef products, prompting the Dutch Foods and Wares Authority to block shipments from the slaughterhouse where the meat was discovered, The Associated Press reported Wednesday. 

The report noted the agency has prohibited the movement of 690 tons of meat in the slaughterhouse's freezers and refrigerators until Feb. 3 so the slaughterhouse's management has time to trace meat shipments between Jan. 1, 2012 and Jan. 23, 2014.

The news broke amid criticism that same day from The European Consumer Organisation that the European Union hasn't done enough to fulfill its promises one year after it was discovered that horsemeat was sold as beef.

"Clearer labels and tougher controls need to be enacted to make manufacturers more liable for what they put in our food," said Monique Goyens, Director General of The European Consumer Organisation. We need higher financial penalties for those businesses who take risks, while independent inspections should remain the norm."

In the United Kingdom, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) has published a third quarterly report that revealed no new positive results from the testing of beef products for horse meat. Of the six reports from FSA, 44,968 tests have been negative while 47 have tested positive for horse meat.