EU horsemeat scandal: experts draw up test plans

 

 Europe-wide tests should reveal the true scale of the horsemeat problem

 

Food safety experts from across Europe are due meet in Brussels to address the scandal over mislabelled horsemeat. 

The EU Standing Committee on the Food Chain will draw up plans for large-scale testing of beef products to check if they contain horse DNA.
On Thursday the French government suspended the licence of processing firm Spanghero, saying it had "knowingly" sold horsemeat as beef.
In the UK three people were arrested for suspected fraud in meat sales.
The widening scandal has affected at least 12 countries and raised questions about the complexity of the food industry's supply chains across Europe.
The previously little-known committee is suddenly the focus of attention, and the plans it comes up with could eventually have a huge impact on consumer confidence in the food being eaten in Europe, the BBC's Matthew Price in Brussels says.
The experts from all 27 EU countries will try to devise accurate random tests to determine how the scale of the mislabelling of horsemeat.
The will also draw up plans for separate tests to assess the scale of contamination with phenylbutazone or "bute"- a veterinary medicine considered potentially harmful to humans.
Their proposals will still have to be approved by EU ministers.

Read more: updatallnews