More horsemeat found labelled as beef
2013-02-21 15:01
Bucharest - Horsemeat labelled as beef has been found by
Romanian veterinary authorities in products destined for the local market, an
official said on Thursday.
"The meat was seized in a deposit in Bucharest. An
investigation is ongoing", Raluca Monea, a spokesperson for the veterinary
watchdog ANSVSA, told AFP.
The authorities suspect fraud as the Bucharest meat
trader acknowledged he mislabelled the batch of 100kg, ANSVSA added.
"The meat was set to be sold in Romania and we
cannot make any link between this isolated case and what is happening in other
countries in Europe", the veterinary watchdog said in a separate
statement.
A vast food scandal has erupted in Europe after horsemeat
was found in so-called beef readymade-meals and burgers in Britain and Ireland.
An investigation pointed to French firm Spanghero as the
main culprit for mislabelling meat bought in Romania through a complicated
network of traders in Cyprus and The Netherlands.
Since then, supermarket chains across Europe have removed
millions of "beef" products as tests are carried out to detect
horsemeat.
Food giants like Findus, Nestlé and top beef producer JBS of
Brazil have been embroiled in the scandal.
