Horse Meat Scandal Spreads; Dutch Officials Recall 50,000 Tons of Meat

by Judie Bizzozero, Senior Editor

THE HAGUE, The NetherlandsOn April 10, the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (nVWA) issued a massive recall of beef suspected of containing horse meat. The watchdog group said more than 50,000 tons of mislabeled meat products may have been sold to 16 European Union countries and at least 370 businesses between Jan. 1, 2011 and Feb. 15, 3013.

Two Dutch meat suppliersWiljo Import en Export B.V. and Vleesgroothandel Willy Selten B.V. were named as the sources of the latest food safety scandal involving horse meat. The watchdog group said companies that purchased the mislabeled meat have possibly already processed the meat and sold it to retailers.

In response to the recall, the European Commission today issued public advisory asking consumers and retailers to check all beef products (frozen and refrigerated) originating from The Netherlands.

According to the nVWA website: Because of the unclear origin of consignments of meat, the food safety of the meat is not guaranteed. Therefore, the nVWA under legislation forced the product as unfit for human consumption or animal feed to criticize. At this moment there are no concrete indications that there is a danger to public health."

The horse meat scandal came to light in January, when health officials discovered horse meat labeled as beef in Ireland. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) on Feb. 15 published the first set of industry results from beef products that have been tested for the presence of horse DNA. The agency said 1% of the nearly 2,501 results tested positive for the presence of horse DNA.

On Feb. 25, Swedish furniture retailer IKEA recalled meatballs distributed to 13 European countries after food inspectors in the Czech Republic found traces of horsemeat in the products. The meatballs were sold in IKEAs take-home Food Market, not restaurants.

On April 5, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) ordered inspectors to increase testing on all meat imports from Ireland, Poland and the United Kingdom, even though government officials previously noted the United States doesn't import beef from countries that found horse meat in beef products. Inspectors also have been instructed to begin performing "species" testing on some beef-product imports, regardless of where the food comes from.