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Fee
Platinum Member
2601 Posts |
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george
Gold Member
Wales
1353 Posts |
 Posted - 10 Feb 2013 : 9:48:00 PM
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I think we are still at the tip of the iceberg  |
George xxx
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Judith S
Platinum Member
Wales
15686 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2013 : 08:30:42 AM
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| The probability is that pretty much everybody that has eaten any processed meat product in the last 10 years will have eaten horse meat. DNA testing for horse meat has not been carried out routinely since 2003 when they found it in salami, so if it is there now the chances are it has been there for ages. |
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borleybird
Bronze Member
184 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2013 : 09:38:03 AM
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That's very interesting and I may add Morrison's to the shops I will buy meat from.
There is something we can all do as consumers and that is to buy meat products only if we know and trust their source. Impacting on multi nationals profit is about the only way we can get them to listen and change. As long as we continue to demand cheap inferior food, it will be supplied. Few years ago I read an article about fish which worked out that weight for weight, the fish in fish fingers was one of the most expensive you could buy. So my reckoning is that if I buy quality food, I get better monetary and nutritional value as I'm not paying for all the rubbish used to bulk out food. |
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george
Gold Member
Wales
1353 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2013 : 10:52:09 AM
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Well I am close to being veggie anyway, I am just a fussy eater though and don't like the taste and texture of most meat and a bit of gristle would leave me heaving  I eat chicken so it's not because of the animals (although it does cross my mind) my problem is that we should be able to know that if it says beef then that's what we get, I agree the only way as consumers is to go to our local butchers, but alas I can't stomach the smell in there, lol. I know I am such a wimp  |
George xxx
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Goldenmane
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
4964 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2013 : 11:00:28 AM
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| Just heard on Radio4, and I didn't get all the facts as walking dogs, but 70,000 horses were exported from Ireland, I think they said live, for slaughter. |
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george
Gold Member
Wales
1353 Posts |
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sab2
Platinum Member
8467 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2013 : 11:49:37 AM
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| I am not a meat eater although i do eat fish, my OH dose eat meat and i have now said i shall go to the farm shop about 20mins from us and get him some meat from there as the chap prepares his own mince , chops etc, i hope that more people will support our farmers and from now on buy British produce from the butchers farm shops etc, it may be a bit more expensive but at least you know what you are getting. Lets hope something positive comes out of this dreadful episode . |
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Fee
Platinum Member
2601 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2013 : 8:03:15 PM
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So the health minister is pledging firm and immediate action to deal with this scandal of 'fraud through mislabelling'.
What do you think is the chance of him pledging firm and immediate action on the fraud through mislabelling of all the animals slaughtered without stunning? Halal meat should be labelled too you know! Some people want that less than they do horsemeat. 
Just push papers around, tick boxes, say what you don't mean, care less what you say and look like you're doing something...(that's my definition of politicians)
Fee
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sab2
Platinum Member
8467 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2013 : 8:28:32 PM
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And of course while he is pushing his papers round and ticking boxes , it will of course cost the tax payer many thousands for him to do this   |
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kim gasper
Bronze Member
England
136 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2013 : 9:17:33 PM
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In recent month's I have been far more of a lurker than a "poster" on AL...but in this instance I felt I would add my twopenneth!
I work at a poultry processing plant/slaughter house. We are VERY strictly monitored by government health officials, vets working under the banner of the Meat Hygiene Service. The vets are concerned with every aspect of the birds' welfare at all times. They have the power to close us down, instantly, IF they feel that the very strict welfare & hygiene regulations under which we have to operate, are breached IN ANY WAY WHAT-SO-EVER. We either currently supply, or will have supplied to (over the 50+ years that the company has been in existence) every High Street brand of supermarket there is in the UK. Of all the supermarkets which have ever inspected the premises, prior to, (but also, on an on-going basis) placing orders we have found that Sainsbury's & M&S have alway's and consistently set the very highest standards, which have to be met. Being rather a cynical person, I do therefore wonder if the interview in the link at the begining of this thread is actually for real....or an opportunity for Morrison's & Waitrose to gain public approval?? |
Many years experience owning & riding my own horses. Fell in love with Arabians at 11 years old when given a ride on "Trevallion", a 3/4 bred who was a livery where I worked as a stablehand. I have never forgotten that ride, Thank You Yvonne- should you ever read this!I now have 2 beautiful purebreds.
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Fee
Platinum Member
2601 Posts |
Posted - 12 Feb 2013 : 7:05:43 PM
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An abbatoir in Yorkshire and a meat business in Wales whom the abbatoir supply to have been raided and suspended today for allegations of supplying horsemeat labelled as beef.
So why did the government make us passport all our horses? Oh yea to safeguard them and us. I want to know if all these horses being slaughtered had passports and were they retuned to the issuing society? It's not only the risks to our health and being duped but I also want to know where these horses are from.
Sick greedy people.
Fee
ETA I've just had a thought. I wont be surprised if one of the fallouts of this scandal is the government making us ear tag all our horses, at our expense of course (the charge will be needed to go towards them keeping records to safeguard our horses and the food chain, just like the passports in place atm) BTW, I'm being sarcastic with the latter 
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Edited by - Fee on 12 Feb 2013 7:29:49 PM |
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MinHe
Platinum Member
England
2927 Posts |
Posted - 12 Feb 2013 : 7:24:45 PM
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Firstly, Irish farmers have been exporting horses on the hoof for meat for decades - it's not exactly a state secret! Ironically, these horses come from exactly the same sources as the high-priced coloured cobs seen everywhere. A friend's family in Ireland breeds them - they are known in local parlance as 'choppers', for obvious reasons. This is one of the reasons why the grossly inflated prices of coloured cobs infuriates me.
Secondly, the horse passport system was NEVER about horse security - it was always about meat and tracking equine drugs in the food chain. Security was the excuse it was 'sold' on to the British equestrian community - and it has been as effective as it was expected to be (ie, not at all).
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Quarabian
Platinum Member
Wales
4340 Posts |
Posted - 12 Feb 2013 : 7:33:13 PM
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Fee, the place in Yorkshire is the same name as the guy who helped us to get our Highland heifer Heather back when she went feral (long story, happy ending) He is a marksman and is better known for supplying game (deer, wild boar) Now I have to wonder if the high priced meat sold as venison was acrually horse. Worse still, did he shoot these horses for sport?
Our involvement with him was to dart our heifer with sedative to bring her back to the farm. He was the expert in his field (no pun intended) He was so compassionate then that I am thoroughly disappointed in what he has become. |
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Judith S
Platinum Member
Wales
15686 Posts |
Posted - 12 Feb 2013 : 7:33:52 PM
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| The point of the news item yesterday on the horses exported from Ireland was that they were on forged passports and had previously been declared unfit for human consumption. The USPCA were using the facts to show that the passport system was not working. |
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Judith S
Platinum Member
Wales
15686 Posts |
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Fee
Platinum Member
2601 Posts |
Posted - 12 Feb 2013 : 7:41:21 PM
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Minhe not only the gypsy cobs are being bred and slaughtered ten to the dozen, but throughbreds from the racing industry, here and in Ireland
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Fee
Platinum Member
2601 Posts |
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Pasch
Platinum Member
2277 Posts |
Posted - 12 Feb 2013 : 8:03:13 PM
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Fee,I knew a guy who rented horses for hacks.When one of his horses was too old he got a younger horse from a dealer who also had a slaughterhouse (horses and donkeys).Horse had to just be the same colour (bay or chestnut,for example)and sex of course.He said government vets were just dealing with papers and could hardly tell a horse from another let alone the horse age.Some of his horses were 25 on passport,say,and "looked"(were,in fact)5 or 6 years old!The old or sick or injured horse went back to dealer(in exchange of the young one,plus some money)and was slaughtered.
When all horses were traced and passported it became more difficult but I am sure if there's a will (and money to be earned) there's a way.Since 2001,horses have to be microchipped.Some microchips move and get impossible to find or read,so another one has to be placed,this excuse often leads to horses becoming different horses...some chips are very easy to demagnetise...it's a seedy world out there... |
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Fee
Platinum Member
2601 Posts |
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Vik1
Platinum Member
1711 Posts |
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Fee
Platinum Member
2601 Posts |
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hazelcat74
Silver Member
472 Posts |
Posted - 12 Feb 2013 : 9:55:12 PM
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| I had to sign in my horse's passports to say not for human consumption before the vet would provide antibiotics or bute,they were very fussy about it |
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Naar
Bronze Member
Wales
78 Posts |
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Fee
Platinum Member
2601 Posts |
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Quarabian
Platinum Member
Wales
4340 Posts |
Posted - 13 Feb 2013 : 09:21:06 AM
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I hate the passport system. I hoped it would help with responsible horse ownership but it isn't working.
My vets don't put anything in the passport. I have one on bute and have needed antibiotics for another, they never ask to see the passport. I also have two donkey foals that I haven't passported yet due to lack of funds. I will be doing them very soon, but even when the animal health people do our farm checks and look at all the cattle passports in detail they only ask if I have passports for the horses, not check them.
Another issue is that if you passport a horse late (think it is after 1 year, that horse cannot enter the food chain. presumably because there is no record of what drugs it has had etc. So that is an incentive for horse owners not to passport their horses, it should mean that they won't be any good to the slaughtermen. But of course we now know that it wouldn't make any difference.
I would campaign for passports to be abolished. Instead I would like to see enhanced breed registration documents as a way of identifying horses. |
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Topic |
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Horsemeat scandal
