29 beef samples test positive for horse DNA in UK: FSA

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has announced that 2,501 tests of processed beef products in the UK have now been carried out as part of the ongoing horse meat scandal, of which 29 samples were found to be positive for contamination.

According to the agency, 2,472 of the tested beef samples, which amounts to nearly 99%, were negative for the presence of horse DNA at or above the level of 1%, with around 950 tests still in progress.

The 29 samples which tested positive for the presence of undeclared horse meat at or above a level of 1%, were related to seven products that have already been reported, and the food business and the FSA have taken appropriate steps to pull those products off store shelves.

The agency said that it has been working together with trade bodies in the industry to gather these results, for an exact picture of the tests being conducted across the country’s food chain.

Earlier this month, the FSA instructed the food industry to carry out authenticity tests on composite beef products, including burgers, lasagnes and meatballs, over the ongoing horse meat scandal.

The tests were conducted on both raw ingredients and final products from a range of manufacturers, catering suppliers, wholesalers, producers and retailers throughout the UK, and products which tested positive for horse DNA were tested for the presence of veterinary drug phenylbutazone, known as bute.

However, the food regulator said that all of the tests for bute were negative.

Meanwhile, European Union (EU) governments have approved an EU-wide programme to conduct DNA tests on beef samples to assess the scale of the horse meat food scandal.

In addition to basic tests, the first one-month testing plan will involve examining horsemeat for potentially harmful drug residues, with the results of the initial tests expected to be announced by mid-April.