The FSA has reassured Asda that the quantities found pose a low risk to human health.
The FSA is quoted as saying, ‘Bute is not allowed to enter the food chain; however, even if people have eaten products which contain contaminated horse meat, the risk to health is very low.’
“Consumers have a right to expect that food is exactly what it says on the label,” said a spokesperson for Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs). “Due to the government’s swift action, food businesses carried out 5,430 tests for horse DNA in a matter of weeks with over 99% testing negative. All products testing positive for more than 1% horse DNA were named, withdrawn from sale and tested for bute as quickly as possible.”
Defra chief medical officer Professor Dame Sally Davies has said, “Horse meat containing phenylbutazone presents a very low risk to human health. Phenylbutazone, known as bute, is a commonly used medicine in horses. It is also prescribed to some patients who are suffering from a severe form of arthritis. The levels of bute that have previously been found in horse carcasses mean that a person would have to eat 500-600 100% horse meat burgers a day to get close to consuming a human’s daily dose. And it passes through the system fairly quickly, so it is unlikely to build up in our bodies.
‘In patients who have been taking phenylbutazone as a medicine, there can be serious side effects but these are rare. It is extremely unlikely that anyone who has eaten horse meat containing bute will experience one of these side effects.”
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024