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Irish horsemeat suppliers expect demand for their meat to fall as the ripple effect of a fresh horsemeat scandal in Europe is felt.
Europol arrested 66 people for trading horsemeat unfit for human consumption and said it had “dismantled [a] crime group” involved in the trading of the meat.
Sixty-five people were arrested by Spanish police and one was arrested in Belgium. Those arrested in Spain were charged with counts of animal abuse, document forgery, perverting the course of justice, crimes against public health, money laundering and being part of a criminal organisation. Europol said the operation was carried out in coordination with Belgium, France, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
Human consumption
Operation Gazel uncovered a scam whereby horses in bad shape, too old or simply labelled as “not suitable for consumption” were being slaughtered in two slaughterhouses.
The horses came from Portugal and northern Spain, their meat was processed in a specific facility and sent on to Belgium, one of the biggest horsemeat exporters in the European Union. The criminal organisation forged the animals’ identification by modifying their microchips and documentation.
Spain’s Guardia Civil identified a Dutch businessman, who was linked to the 2013 Irish case of the beefburgers containing horsemeat, as the head of the criminal organisation. He was arrested in Belgium.
Irish situation
Irish horsemeat supplier John Joe Fitzpatrick from Shannonside Foods in Straffan, Co Kildare told the Irish Farmers Journal that he was “very concerned” about the developments in Europe because “it means that horses with false passports went into the food chain”.
Ted Farrell of Emerald Isle Foods in Thomastown, Co Kilkenny, said the scandal would result in a fall-off in demand for horsemeat in Ireland and across Europe.
“We will be quieter. It’s a food safety issue, the same will happen with horsemeat as it would if there was a problem with chicken or Brazilian beef, people will stop buying,” he maintained.
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