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(Image source: Wiikimedia Commons)
BY JASMINE BAILEY
The European horsemeat
crisis is getting more confusing. Just when you thought you knew what your ‘beef’
was actually made out of — turns out, one more animal might have snuck in there.
Now,
there could reportedly be a Romanian donkey to go along with that horse and cow— all
combined to make up a beef burger?
According to The Independent— it’s possible. And
they believe a major reason could be Romania’s 2006 ban on horse-drawn carriages. Donkeys
have also been added to the list which means more animals are being put down.
“Horses
have been banned from Romanian roads and millions of animals have been sent to the slaughterhouse.”
So, how did it get from Romania to supermarket shelves in 16 countries? France 24 maps out
the mystery meat’s journey that began with Romanian agents…
“Working for
a Dutch subcontractor acting for the French company Spangero. It was then sold on to the
company’s main client Comigel. From Comigel’s factors in Luxembourg it made ready meals…”
Ready
meals for French companies like Findus, whose lasagnas were found to have 100 percent horsemeat.
And as Bloomberg reports— the French government is now promising to take legal action.
“It
now says its ready to press charges that could result in imprisonment. That’s got the countries
big supermarkets removing even more products from their shelves.”
The UK government
is also heavily involved, giving food producers a week to test beef products. But as Irish
Examiner points out, there’s not much officials can do unless the horse meat poses a health
risk— which it does not.