General Chat

Oh I agree !!! But for some reason this country slavishly follows EU regs when it's clear many others don't !!!

those horses some of which have been vaccinated with drugs not fit for humans
or maybe also given ket a horse tanquilizer
and what about the antibiotics they may have been given
some very dangerous to humans

all good grounds to ban the meat :-( :-(

Apparently Joy you are only allowed to do that if there is a health risk involved...and you'd have to eat copious amounts of it if it contains bute to make a difference........or so they say ! ;-)

to be honest
this country has been sending poor neddy to these countries for slaughter for years
so its a bit ironic really
that poor neddys been found in food inported from these countries

so giddy up and eat your teas ;-) ;-)

maybe we should stop buying french meat like they did to us
nearly bankrupting our farmers :-D :-D

My objection is that food processors are meant to label what is in their food.
If they're using horsemeat (or any other meat) and calling it beef, what else are they lying abut concernng the ingredients?
Is the 'bechemal sauce' just cornflour with a dollop of suspicious cheese flavouring?
Are they lying about the number of 'e' numbers?
How fresh are the vegetables in a quiche?

In France a lot of people ( including moi ) quite like horse meat.

Until about 150 years ago it was illegal to sell horse meat in France for human consumption. The reasons were customary as in the UK. However rising food prices and a hungry population caused the law to be changed.

On account of the need to ensure beef and horse were not mixed up AND to ensure that horse meat was ok the special chevaline butchers were established. They have a horse head on the front of the shop and only sell horse meat plus, of course, alcohol. Unlike the modern UK French butchers of all kinds know how to butcher a hindquarter which the "cutters" at Tesco etc with 6 weeks training do not. The cuts from a horse are not the exactly same as for a beef. In any case the cuts for all meat in France are a lot different to the UK.

Tourists are probably not aware that when they opt for a budget "bavette" or "onglet" and frites at a brasserie or motorway stop that it is more likely than not to be horse meat.

Given the life and death patterns of a working horse be it pulling a trailer or a race horse I would be very leery of horse meat with no provenance.

I wonder if people are aware that the EU also imports tens of thousands of tons of horse flesh from the USA ?

I really cannot see what is so difficult about buying some lasagne pasta, bechamel sauce and some ground beef and knocking up yr own it does not take very long. My French OH makes her own sauce. You can make a whole lot and then store portions in the freezer which can be microwaved as needed. Cheaper than the ready-2-eat variety as well!

Most of the English haven't got a clue when it comes to food, the phrase pearls before swine comes to mind. No wonder they get served all kinds of yucky stuff and tend to get obese with all the added sugar in ready meals.

Well, this horsemeat business makes sense to those who thought that corned beef was actually horsemeat!

I remember that one of our teachers at school (many years ago) asked whether those who thought that corned beef came from horses to raise their hands - ... now I'm not sure that those who believed it were so very wrong!

Rollo

Am I right in saying that it has to be treated very differently than the meats we are used to here in the UK and is why only sold by an actual horse butchers.

We will definitely aim to support our local butcher a bit more.

What is interesting about the horse meat if I remember righlly is that it apparently came from Romania, sold to a Cyprus company which shipped it from Romania to France, which shipped the product to Holland which shipped it to the UK.

Why can't we produce something as simple as lasagne in the UK? At least, if our food inspection is up to scratch (?) then the ingredients should be traceable.

I lived in France for a long time and have often eaten horse meat. A popular variety is sold as a budget steak. It is tougher than beef and has a stronger flavour. Its main selling point it that it is much cheaper than beef. Nowadays some supermarkets sell it but we also got ours at the chevaline ( horse butcher ).

http://irishherault.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/horsemeat-viande-cheval/

The problem with the current hoo ha is not that the processed meat products have horse meat but that the horse meat of of unknown provenance. Quite apart from injection of bute pain killer into the horse ( harmful to humans ) there is a long list of stuff that can be there with any meat including horse unless proper methods are followed at the abbatoir.

Since the mad cow affair the tracability of meat products has been a key part of safety in the EU. It appears that the rules have been thrown out of the window in the case of processed products.

Eastern Europe has a huge problem with criminals embedded into the political and business process to a degree beyond that even of southern Italy. The UK by assuming that laws and processes are the same all over leaves itself open to no end of abuse whether it is misuse of European Arrest Warrants, child benefit, cars in the UK with no insurance and now this horse meat affair.

Other countries e.g. France do not hesitate to invoke European law and use the temporary suspensions available with vigour when required. The UK should do the same.

Given some of the real nasties that can exist in meat anybody eating that box of Findus probably enjoys Russian roulette too.

Tesco, Iceland, Lidel & Asda ... glad I shop at Sainsburys & do not buy ready meals.


I have no problem with eating horse meat but only if it has been certified as for human consumption and has been butchered correctly.

Oh I bet Tescos are quaking,,,,,heads should roll from every direction,

bet not many will be buying any meats in there,,,,,

whats in the sausages,,,,,pies,,,,,,, ;-)

Oh I bet Tescos are quaking,,,,,heads should roll from every direction,

bet not many will be buying any meats in there,,,,,

whats in the sausages,,,,,pies,,,,,,, ;-)

Tescos everyday value spag bog......at least 60% horse meat.

Really this is just getting worse and worse..how long have we been exposed to this fgs?????

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2277093/BREAKING-NEWS-Tesco-confirm-Everyday-Value-Bolognese-contained-60-horsemeat.html#axzz2KQgDINc6

Not when its not for human consumption,,,,,,,,,,I've never ever seen a meat labled Horsemeat in any shop supermarket or deli in England or Wales, Goat yes, but never Dobbin......... :-)

Yes I do wonder at these people that line up at burger and sausage vans,,,,,,,just whats in them , rubbish ,tails,skin, ears eyes and bits unmentionable ,,,,,,,,yuk........glad I'm not a shop bought burger eater or of any shop made meals..

I do wonder how many stables have had barbeques for their patrons over the years.
All those horse loving little kids in their jodhpurs and riding boots standing around scoffing burgers……..


Mayfield ;-)

For me it's the principle of the thing..if i buy beef i expect to EAT beef...if i wanted horse meat I'd have bought it.

There is now concerns regarding the possible ill effects from this horsemeat...as it's possible it could contain a veterinary drug which should NOT be entering the food chain.....

StaffyKnot, I think you are missing the point by a mile - it's not that horsemeat was included in these meals as such which people are complaining about, but the fact that consumers didn't know.
People can eat what they like, but I think most meat-eaters have things they wouldn't touch. That's their business and not to be the object of derision I think.
Jan

Whats wrong with horsemeat? I eat it often when I am in France, it is delicious. Very lean and tasty. Why the hang-up about horsemeat? The only differences between a cow and a horse are one has horns and some udders that produce milk and the other doesn't. Apart from that they are mammals of roughly the same size, they eat grass and produce copious amounts of fertilizer and gas.

Oh. I forgot - there is the aaaaaah factor. Poor poor geegee.

Mayfield they actually said that, if it became obvious that the meat was a health risk as in the case of BSE when our beef was banned, then they would certainly bring in a ban.