Brussels, 24/07/2014 (Agence Europe) - The results of the second round of coordinated testing, launched in April of this year in the member states to detect possible cases of horsemeat food fraud, were published on Thursday 24 July and are encouraging, as they point to a considerable drop in cases of fraud (see EUROPE 11019).
Of the 2622 DNA tests carried out by the competent authorities in the 28 member states (plus Norway, Iceland and Switzerland), only 16 showed traces of undeclared horse DNA, equating to 0.61% of the samples. The first round of tests carried out in 2013 following the scandal of horsemeat sold as beef in ready meals showed that 4.6% of the samples tested contained undeclared horsemeat.
Tonio Borg, European Commissioner for Health, welcomed this highly significant improvement in the situation. “These findings confirm that our collective efforts are bearing fruit and that increased controls to uncover food fraud are having real impact. Restoring the trust and confidence of European consumers and businesses in our food chain is vital for our economy given that the food sector is one of the EU's largest economic sectors”, he said.
This second programme of DNA testing was coordinated by the European Commission, as was the first. The Commission covers half of the cost of the tests, which are expected to set it back around €145,440 for the co-financing of laboratory expenditure and €20,000 for the costs of the laboratory coordinating the testing methodology. (AN)