UK finds horse DNA in Romanian sliced beef tins

Lincolnshire County Council officials have detected the presence of horsemeat in canned sliced beef tins imported from Romania.

The problem was identified during routine food testing in September 2013, as part of a national Food Standards Agency sampling programme, which was initiated following the horsemeat scandal earlier this year.

The affected batches were found on sale at Home Bargains in Grantham, UK, and officials removed the product from the shelves, as the labelling did not feature horsemeat as an ingredient.

Labelled as ‘Food Hall Sliced Beef in Rich Gravy’, the 320g packs of canned sliced beef tins were manufactured in Romania in January 2013 and feature a ‘best before’ date of January 2016 and a batch code of 13.04.C.

The products were distributed to Home Bargains (TJ Morris) and Quality Save stores in the UK.

The product was found to contain horse DNA in the range of 1% to 5%.

It was also tested for the presence of the drug phenylbutazone, known as ‘bute’; however, no trace was found.

Customers who purchased the implicated product have been advised to return it to the place of purchase.

Commenting on the incident, Nick Martin, Northern Europe SVP of UK-based private label software firm Trace One, said, "This latest news from the FSA of horsemeat being discovered in canned beef from a Romanian manufacturer, shows that the effect of the horsemeat scandal is ongoing and wider reaching than originally anticipated.

"While Home Bargains and Quality Save stores have acted swiftly, ensuring that all relevant goods are removed from the shelves, contamination of food products is an issue that retailers and their suppliers will never be free from."

"The reality is that retailers cannot monitor every possible ingredient at every stage of its journey. In order to ensure the sanctity of the products on their shelves retailers must be able to undertake fast, comprehensive recalls of goods that may have been affected, thereby safeguarding their reputation and limiting consumer damage," Martin added.

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Image: The Food Hall Sliced Beef in Rich Gravy was found to contain horse DNA in the range of 1% to 5%.