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Information about the trade routes
The NRW consumer protection ministry announced on Wednesday 20. February presented an interim balance of the current sampling in the context of the scandal about wrongly declared food. A total of around 215 samples were taken in North Rhine-Westphalia in the last few weeks (as of February 19.02.2013, 16, 69 p.m.). So far, 63 samples have been evaluated, 6 of which were negative. Horsemeat was detected XNUMX times by DNA analysis. Further evaluations are expected later this week.
Due to a loophole in the law, the authorities are currently unable to name the companies affected, their contaminated products or publish the test results.
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In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, 39 companies are authorized to produce beef products, of which 26 companies process beef into finished products. In these companies, the suppliers of the raw materials, the declarations of no objection from the sub-suppliers, the results of their own inspections and traceability were checked. "Our inspectors had to realize that statements "free from horsemeat" cannot be reliably trusted," stated Consumer Protection Minister Dr. Til Backhaus. Incoming goods inspections within the scope of self-monitoring are decisive. Companies that can prove no or insufficient self-control samples are officially sampled.
In connection with undeclared horsemeat, 13 samples have been received by the State Office for Agriculture, Food Safety and Fisheries LALLF in the past few days, and 11 results are available so far. Horse DNA was detected in 5 samples, of which 3 companies are affected. These include Edeka Valluhn, SGS Geniesser Service Laage-Konskamp with suppliers from Luxembourg and the Netherlands, and a company from the Rostock district.
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Misdeclared goods containing horsemeat
Consumers who want to know whether incorrectly labeled products containing horsemeat are stored in their freezer or refrigerator can find bundled information from the federal states responsible for food monitoring on the new website www.pferdefleisch-rueckrufe.de.
On the regularly updated website, consumers will find an overview of the products recalled by manufacturers and trading companies. According to information from the food trade, consumers can bring back the affected goods and get their money back.
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Food industry condemns false declaration as consumer deception
In connection with the discovery of horsemeat in frozen ready meals, in which only beef was declared as an ingredient, the Bund für Lebensmittelrecht und Lebensmittelkunde e. V. (BLL) pointed out that this is a clear case of a false declaration and thus consumer deception. "If horsemeat is used as an ingredient, there is nothing wrong with that, but it must also be expressly labeled," explains Managing Director Christoph Minhoff. It must be clarified immediately at which point in the supply chain the criminal re-declaration of horsemeat to beef occurred, which is in no way acceptable and must be sanctioned. "It is unacceptable that individual criminals bring the entire food industry into disrepute," emphasizes Minhoff.
The leading association of the food industry welcomes the official measures that have been initiated to quickly determine the causes. "It is also in the food industry's own interest to protect its brands and maintain its competitiveness to ensure the quality and safety of its raw materials and to exclude criminal elements from the market," explains the BLL general manager. However, the BLL does not see this as a fundamental questioning of the existing close-meshed and well-functioning control system in Germany.
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Ask about slow responses
On February 13, 2013, Matthias Wolfschmidt, Deputy Managing Director of the consumer organization foodwatch, explained the scandal surrounding incorrectly declared horse meat:
"At the latest since January 31st, the federal and state governments have known that a French manufacturer is selling cheap horse meat to consumers as expensive beef. Food retailers have also been informed since then. The fraud has therefore been known for a long time.
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In connection with the horsemeat scandal in Great Britain and Ireland, Kaiser's Tengelmann GmbH already withdrew the A&P frozen lasagne from sale on Wednesday, February 6, 2013 in the interests of precautionary consumer protection. "On the 6th of this month, we were informed by our supplier that horsemeat could possibly have been used in the lasagne. For this reason, we reacted immediately and took the product out of sale," says Raimund Luig, spokesman for the management of Kaiser's Tengelmann GmbH. On February 14, 2013, the French manufacturer Comigel officially informed its customers that the ready meals it produces have been tested in independent laboratories and consistently contain horse meat. It can therefore be assumed that the A&P lasagne also contained horsemeat, although Kaiser's Tengelmann itself does not yet have its own test results. "Since yesterday evening we have known from the manufacturer that our initial suspicions were correct, and I am very pleased that, to protect our customers, we removed the product from all branches as soon as the suspicion became known," Luig continued.
"We feel deceived and betrayed by our supplier. In a lasagne with beef bolognese, there should only be beef," explains Luig. "We will definitely assert claims for damages here." Kaiser's Tengelmann also criticizes how the authorities are dealing with the issue. "It took far too long for the official warning systems installed to make it clear that Germany was also affected," said Luig.
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The Commission and EU states decide on comprehensive tests on February 15
Comprehensive tests of meat products: in the fraud scandal involving unlabelled horse meat in food, the EU Commission, together with the member states, is resolutely taking action.
On February 15, at a meeting of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health, the EU states followed the proposal of the European Commission to test food throughout Europe for the presence of unlabelled horse meat as well as for possible residues of the drug phenylbutazone. The investigations are co-financed by the European Commission and start immediately. They will initially last a month, but can be extended for a further two months.
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To the Lebensmittelklarheit.de portal: Food industry ready for discussion - but not on the basis of specific brands
On the occasion of the discussion about the evaluation of the portal Lebensmittelklarheit.de, the Federation for Food Law and Food Science e. V. (BLL) made it clear that the food industry supported the portal's goal of promoting a fair and objective exchange of views between consumers and business from the start. A factual, objective explanation of the applicable labeling and presentation requirements, including current issues in the information section, is also advocated. "The food industry does not refuse to discuss questions of labeling policy, but this cannot and must not take place using the example of individual brands or products that comply with applicable law," emphasizes BLL Managing Director Christoph Minhoff. It is unacceptable that individual brands are presented as examples and damaged in competition just to trigger a discussion on labeling policy.
With Lebensmittelklarheit.de a legal distinction must be made between deception and disappointment. Anyone who deceives is acting illegally. However, the portal is about a disappointed expectation of individual consumer ideas despite a legitimate product presentation. If a company adheres to the legal rules of the game created by the legislator, it must not be accused of unfair deceit on a state-sponsored portal. This is exactly what the portal suggests. Of course, disappointed consumer expectations can also lead to a voluntary change in the product presentation by the provider. However, this is up to the individual decision of the company. "Manufacturers want to sell their products. That is why it is the basis of entrepreneurial activity to react to customer criticism and wishes," explains the BLL Managing Director. The vast majority of consumers are looking for a direct dialogue with the food industry anyway. The companies use numerous information channels every day, such as telephone hotlines, websites, personal customer contacts, open days and social media for intensive customer information and direct exchange with customers.
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Consumers do not understand food claims and feel misled
Wellness water, crispy duck or apple pie from the region: Packaging often depicts food better than it really is - and most consumers feel deceived. This is the result of a representative study commissioned by the Federation of German Consumer Organizations (vzbv). According to this, 72 percent of those surveyed have the feeling that there is a lot of tricking going on when it comes to the information on food. Less than half of consumers find the labeling understandable at all.
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Heinrich Böll Foundation and BUND call for a turnaround in agricultural policy
On average, every German eats 1094 animals in their lifetime, divided into four cattle, four sheep, 12 geese, 37 ducks, 46 pigs, 46 turkeys and 945 chickens. With an annual meat consumption of around 60 kilograms, Germans eat twice as much meat as people in developing and emerging countries.
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"Anyone who takes animal welfare seriously thinks beyond borders"
The Association of German Turkey Producers (VDP), which is part of the Central Association of the German Poultry Industry (ZDG), is campaigning for uniform binding EU-wide regulations on turkey husbandry. "Anyone who takes animal welfare seriously must think beyond Germany's borders," says VDP Chairman and ZDG Vice President Thomas Storck, calling on federal politicians to campaign in Brussels for European legal requirements for turkey husbandry. Storck is thus reacting to calls for uniform federal regulations for turkey husbandry, which were voiced at the conference of agricultural ministers of the federal states last week.
