Horse Meat Scandal

2

Replies

  • KittenTikka
    KittenTikka Posts: 93
    Horses that find their way illegally into the human food chain could potentially contain other prohibited drugs, not just anti-inflammatories. In the UK, all horses (by law) have to have passports - which have either a signed declaration stating "Not For Human Consumption" or if this is not signed, then ALL drugs given have to be recorded. The problem is, not all horses have passports, some horses seem to be accompanied by the wrong passport (I once vaccinated a horse which, according to its passport, was 12yrs old - I checked the teeth to find several incisors missing and the angles of the jaw suggested that this animal was at least double its passported age). If a passport was issued for a horse before a certain date the horse did not require a microchip to be implanted thus allowing for falsification (if we issue a new passport for any horse now, if it has not already been chipped we have to implant a chip at the same time). Our regulations are not as tightly maintained as they should be, and it's almost impossible to track every horse in this country - other countries may be even more lax in their approach...
  • Tara1B
    Tara1B Posts: 78
    Findus Foods: Just Say Neigh...

    Ha! I didn't actually know Findus still existed until yesterday!
  • Snoozypaws3000
    Snoozypaws3000 Posts: 133 Member
    I am so glad to be vegetarian

    So you should be!! :) I am not veggie but I cook everything from scratch and always have!! And I am so glad!! We even make our own burgers in our house!! Thank goodness!!

    It goes without saying that that we should know what we are eating but cooking from scratch isn't the same as eating totally unprocessed or clean.

    According to your diary you use Smash instant mash rather than fresh spuds, have shop bought cereal, bread and yogurts etc.
    All of these things can be "contaminated"

    Just sayin'
  • Lupercalia
    Lupercalia Posts: 1,857 Member
    If you can't afford to eat good quality meat and still want to eat it, you're kind of out of luck.

    I didn't make that rule, that's just how the world is. As for me, I'd love to be able to eat high quality steak daily, but I can't afford it, so I'm stuck with cheaper cuts of meat and a steak on the rare occasion, when I can splurge a little.

    One can definitely cook from scratch and eat well on a budget, so spare me the ASDA argument. You don't know me or my situation, but I'm not financially well off, and neither was my family growing up. We make sacrifices in other areas in order to eat decent food, because that is important to us as a family.
  • Snoozypaws3000
    Snoozypaws3000 Posts: 133 Member
    .
  • Looseitpleasess
    Looseitpleasess Posts: 1 Member
    That's why you should support BRITISH farmers and but from a local butcher!!
  • miracle4me
    miracle4me Posts: 522 Member
    I did not know it was in Lasagna frozen meals also. I just read this link from drudgereport.com that explains it is 80 % horse meat! Ireland is known for the best Irish Beef free range so this is shocking news. The horse meat came from France. I am thinking it had to be old horses or sickly horses they would not use healthy horse stock. Just wait we will hear soon it is happening in USA also. Food prices in Europe are at least twice the price of USA prices there is no excuse for this. Cattle have to be registered in Ireland and kept track of even if you only want 1 cow. Irish Food standards are high and I have no doubt the standards will go higher.

    http://news.sky.com/story/1049133/findus-beef-lasagne-meals-100-percent-horsemeat
  • amy1612
    amy1612 Posts: 1,356 Member
    I don't eat processed meat. To be honest, if youre buying value sausages, burgers, etc, horse meat is probably one of the LEAST concerning ingredients. Its not going to kill you.
  • barrattandrew
    barrattandrew Posts: 148
    Findus Foods: Just Say Neigh...

    haha just made me chuckle
  • EdwarddeVere
    EdwarddeVere Posts: 178
    I am so glad to be vegetarian

    What about all the insect poop?
  • everysn0wflake
    everysn0wflake Posts: 49
    I'm not even surprised. Times like these makes me happy to be vegetarian.
  • joolywooly33
    joolywooly33 Posts: 421 Member
    If you dont ear cheap burgers and processed foods you have nothing to wory about. I feel sorry for perople in hospital or perhaps schools whe had no choice!
  • JessicaRobin67
    JessicaRobin67 Posts: 275 Member
    I buy majority of my meat at a local butcher... but when dining out, what are we getting?!
  • TheRoadDog
    TheRoadDog Posts: 11,788 Member
    One culture's pets are another culture's sustenance.

    Back in the 60's and 70's a place called Munchyburgers was serving horsemeat hamburgers. 12 cents each. Ate them most days when I was in HS. Delicious. A couiple years after I moved away, it was discovered they were using horsemeat. Closed the place down.

    Look out world. Horsemeat is bad. Make room for the Healthy choice. Like McDonald's or Burger King. I'd rather eat road kill burgers.
  • TrailRunner61
    TrailRunner61 Posts: 2,505 Member
    Pony burgers? Yum :/
  • barrattandrew
    barrattandrew Posts: 148
    Have to say I'm not really that fussed about the whole horse meat thing. I think its wrong that someone is passing off beef as horse but that's all. Horse is a great meat, low in fat and full of protein. I'm a carnivore and will eat meat, I'm not one of those "ooh I only eat chicken, shrink wrapped" folks. I've tried meat from all different animals in my travels and wish Horse was more widely available in the UK.
    The processing of meat isn't necessarily an issue - as long as we know what is going in, salt, additional fat, etc etc. Then they just need to be honest about the source of meat. The thing that is odd is that this has gone undetected for so long, and as far as I can see. nobody has been made really unwell!
    I think it would be quite ironic if some of these foods actually got more unhealthy as cheap fattier beef is added to replace the low fat horse.
  • Danni1585
    Danni1585 Posts: 250 Member
    It makes me thankful for now making healthier choices, there is never a drama with pulses x
  • barrattandrew
    barrattandrew Posts: 148
    I don't eat processed meat. To be honest, if youre buying value sausages, burgers, etc, horse meat is probably one of the LEAST concerning ingredients. Its not going to kill you.

    ^^ this. Horse meat would probably make it better. most of those cheap sausages are all rusk and grissle and the the cheapest pig meat you can imagine.
  • Hendrix7
    Hendrix7 Posts: 1,903 Member
    In before smug vegetarians.........................oh too late.
  • Pookylou
    Pookylou Posts: 988 Member
    Have to say I'm not really that fussed about the whole horse meat thing. I think its wrong that someone is passing off beef as horse but that's all. Horse is a great meat, low in fat and full of protein. I'm a carnivore and will eat meat, I'm not one of those "ooh I only eat chicken, shrink wrapped" folks. I've tried meat from all different animals in my travels and wish Horse was more widely available in the UK.
    The processing of meat isn't necessarily an issue - as long as we know what is going in, salt, additional fat, etc etc. Then they just need to be honest about the source of meat. The thing that is odd is that this has gone undetected for so long, and as far as I can see. nobody has been made really unwell!
    I think it would be quite ironic if some of these foods actually got more unhealthy as cheap fattier beef is added to replace the low fat horse.

    Agreed, my concern is people "not being aware" of what meat is being used.... Makes you wonder what else is going in! (though to be fair that could be marketing speak for "we don't care")
  • galenofedgewood
    galenofedgewood Posts: 146 Member
    Horse meat is actually quite tasty. Don't know what the big rub is on it being horse. I had horse sashimi when I was in Okinawa.

    I got the "it's not beef and was advertised as such" logic, and I can agree with it. Just the "OMG it's horse!" thing boggles my mind.

    Kinda like when people turn up their nose at Bison ("That's weird!") or lamb or anything not cow/pig/chicken.
  • Fedup23
    Fedup23 Posts: 80 Member
    Ive been craving apples and sugar cubes lately... hmmm.
  • emstethem
    emstethem Posts: 263 Member
    Agreed...But, seriously, I'd rather eat the horse meat than the genetically modified salmon that our U.S. FDA is getting ready to let hit the shelves. YUCK... I've been eating mostly deer meat here lately (We hunt). :) I really hate grocery store meat...you just don't know where it has come from...I've been interested in trying to buy all my meat from local farmers here lately....will probably be checking out that option soon too as we're running out of deer...
  • barrattandrew
    barrattandrew Posts: 148
    I would be more worried about the other crap they are allowed to put in your food. At least horse is actually meat.

    this.
  • emstethem
    emstethem Posts: 263 Member
    I would be more worried about the other crap they are allowed to put in your food. At least horse is actually meat.

    This!
  • leappleton
    leappleton Posts: 29
    Im afraid Im a little bit of a snob when it comes to processed burgers, ready made meals etc and think that if you buy a lasagne for 1quid you kind of get what you deserve! You certainly get what you pay for. one lady here said her homemade lasagne for 4 costs a fiver and an asda one cost 2quid less, how much better is that homemade one for your family than all the chemicals and preservatives than are in the asda smart price one?? For two pound I'd rather have the healthier family!
    My first thought however when I heard the news (just goes to show how much using this site has gotten into my bloodstream) was I wonder if the horse meat is less calories?! Imagine you had been logging a beef lasagne and it was horse which could be lower calories! Every cloud and all that! :-)
  • barrattandrew
    barrattandrew Posts: 148
    Horse meat is actually quite tasty. Don't know what the big rub is on it being horse. I had horse sashimi when I was in Okinawa.

    I got the "it's not beef and was advertised as such" logic, and I can agree with it. Just the "OMG it's horse!" thing boggles my mind.

    Kinda like when people turn up their nose at Bison ("That's weird!") or lamb or anything not cow/pig/chicken.

    me too - was the horse sashimi good. sounds like it would have looked a bit like beef carpaccio
  • galenofedgewood
    galenofedgewood Posts: 146 Member
    I've been eating mostly deer meat here lately (We hunt). :)

    /jealous

    I love venison.

    /drool
  • barrattandrew
    barrattandrew Posts: 148
    Im afraid Im a little bit of a snob when it comes to processed burgers, ready made meals etc and think that if you buy a lasagne for 1quid you kind of get what you deserve! You certainly get what you pay for. one lady here said her homemade lasagne for 4 costs a fiver and an asda one cost 2quid less, how much better is that homemade one for your family than all the chemicals and preservatives than are in the asda smart price one?? For two pound I'd rather have the healthier family!
    My first thought however when I heard the news (just goes to show how much using this site has gotten into my bloodstream) was I wonder if the horse meat is less calories?! Imagine you had been logging a beef lasagne and it was horse which could be lower calories! Every cloud and all that! :-)

    The thing is there is only so far this logic takes you, if you ever see how much a cow or a lamb get sold for at a cattle market you'd see that meat is actually REALLY cheap. so if you are buying it on mass, and also only buying cheaper cuts its possible to get the price to be substantially lower. I used to live near a farm that offered a free butchering service if you bought a whole lamb, did it on a couple of occasions with a mate and we had loads, and only spent about £30.
    It is possible to make meals cheaply on mass (just ask a good restaurant).
  • galenofedgewood
    galenofedgewood Posts: 146 Member
    me too - was the horse sashimi good. sounds like it would have looked a bit like beef carpaccio

    I think that carpaccio may be a better description. Very thinly sliced, frozen horse meat.

    It was delicious, though I much preferred the rest of the sushi and sashimi that I had over it. Who needs raw red meat when I can have amazing raw fish? /drool

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