Horse Meat Scandal Widens; IKEA Recalls Meatballs

STOCKHOLMSwedish furniture retailer IKEA is recalling meatballs distributed to 13 European countries after food inspectors in the Czech Republic found traces of horsemeat in the products, the company announced today. The meatballs were sold in IKEAs take-home Food Market, not restaurants.

The recalled pork and beef meatballs were made by Swedish supplier Familjen Dafgard and sold at IKEA stores in Belgium, Cypress, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, The Netherlands, Slovakia, Spain and the United Kingdom,

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.

Last month, European law enforcement authorities and regulators began investigating a network of food suppliers, grocery stores and other companies following revelations that horse meat was detected in beef sold in the United Kingdom. The growing probes could result in a substantial number of civil lawsuits and criminal prosecutions, potentially rattling consumer confidence in a global food supply chain.