Horsemeat scandal - What lessons have been learned one year on?

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

Earlier this week was the first anniversary since one of the biggest crises developed in the history of the food industry. It is fair to say that the horsemeat scandal across the United Kingdom and Europe was bad news for many senior figures in the food process – from those working on the production line to the senior heads of supermarkets and food chains.

However as it is now a year on, what lessons have been learnt? Do you care about what is contained in your meal? Were supermarkets right to be blamed?

The short background

News of horsemeat started to emerge on the 16 January 2013 and it was an issue first highlighted in Ireland. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland said beefburgers with traces of equine DNA, including one product classed as an astonishing 29 per cent horse were being supplied to subsidiaries of the ABP Food Group. This included a food production line in Yorkshire. Whilst this was a concern, few could have predicted the revelations that emerged in the days and weeks ahead.

A day later, the ABP Food Group decided to investigate things further and closed their plant in Ireland while the matter was looked into. Not taking chances, 10 million burgers were pulled off the shelves by retailers including Iceland, Aldi, ASDA and Tesco, whilst fast food chain Burger King switched suppliers to ensure they weren’t dragged into the emerging mess.

Worse came in early February when tests showed traces of horsemeat were now being found in frozen lasagne and spaghetti meals. The Findus food group was now coming under scrutiny with their beef lasagne product believed to be one of the meals that had these disturbing traces. Again, the supermarkets reacted quickly and took away these products from our shelves. A day later, the FSA revealed a second case of “gross contamination” after some Findus UK beef lasagnes (pictured below), made by Comigel, a French food supplier contained upto 100 per cent horsemeat. Allegations of ‘criminal activity’ were made and more products from Comigel were being removed across the UK. The likes of Aldi and Tesco moved quicker than their counterparts, reacting almost as soon as they heard of possible trouble.

Turns out there wasn't much beef in Findus' Lasagne range

While David Cameron labelled the scandal as “completely unacceptable,” there was little he could do. After vigorous DNA testing, most cases had horsemeat down as just a filler ingredient but when some products were mismanaged and called ‘beef’ when they didn’t have any ‘beef’ in them, it damaged the creditability of many leading companies in the food sector. Nearly every meat seller in Europe has been affected, although it didn’t spread to a worldwide issue.

In May last year, Willy Selten, a Dutch meat wholesaler was arrested after it was reported he was selling 300 tonnes of horsemeat as beef. However only he and the interim director of his company Willy Selten BV were arrested and prosecuted. 21 further people were arrested in the south of France as recently as last month after consignments of horsemeat were seized but at the time of writing, no prosecutions have been publicly made.

Should you care?

First and foremost, it has been highlighted by several senior supermarket managers that the ingredient of horsemeat is not harmful to health and many countries across the globe actually eat it. However it is considered as a ‘taboo food’ in both Ireland and the UK.

In the aftermath of the scandal developing, some people were interviewed and were panicking that they were going to be seriously ill. To date, there has been no proven case of anyone dying after eating traces of horsemeat and as a consequence, the whole story was blown totally out of proportion.

One thing that the British public seems to do a lot is panic. It happens all the time if there is a strike looming such as the petrol strike of 2000 or the devastating foot and mouth crisis a year later which almost brought the farming and agricultural sectors to its knees. A small amount of snow also leaves a high proportion in a tailspin. There was a huge influence of media consumed news and too many inaccurate opinions given in the days afterwards.

The horsemeat scandal was not good for us to hear about and it was frankly appalling but it wasn’t going to turn everyday lives upside down. All it meant was perhaps taking more caution in what we digest as human beings. I know for a fact that I don’t normally check ingredients contained in meals and that hasn’t changed (although I have very limited cooking skills). Those who of course have supplements to stick to or are perhaps restricted to what they eat due to gluten-free diets or lactose-free diets should have been more concerned. It was this kind of thing that might mean you don’t totally trust a packet that says ‘this has no traces of wheat’ but it might actually have ‘wheat powder’ contained. This could make an individual very ill and that is gross misconduct, no matter what way you look at it.

What it did show was the levels in trust between consumer and supermarket and consumer to food chain were severely hit and possibly beyond repair. It was okay if you weren’t directly affected like me but what if your favourite meal was Findus Beef Lasagne when actually you were eating Findus Horse Lasagne. Poor packaging, a lack of truth and appalling misinformation turned what could have been something relatively minor into the biggest crisis in this country’s food production since British beef exports were banned by many EU partners in 1996.

I think you should care about what happened because it was quite disturbing, whether affected or not. Even if you don’t want the full details, the majority of people should have the basic ingredients knowledge of what they are eating on a regular basis. Put it this way, you’d be extremely unhappy if the chicken burger or spaghetti ready meal you were eating was actually a horse burger or a Cow Bolognese!

Did supermarkets react quickly enough?

Supermarkets were caught right in the middle by what was happening. In some cases, they were being directly blamed but unless the product was actually from their own various ranges, it is difficult to accuse them of causing the horsemeat scandal. The food is processed in the various food plants across Europe and is probably packaged too before it arrives in the supermarkets up and down the British Isles. The only thing you could blame them for is whether they reacted quickly enough to the horsemeat scandal.

As soon as food, especially the beef products mentioned was being tested and there was confirmation of traces of DNA of horsemeat, the likes of Aldi and Tesco were extremely quick in pulling the affected meals out of supermarkets. It could be seen as a precautionary measure but then again, it won’t have been good if they didn’t do anything. Other supermarkets and I won’t mention any names here were much slower in reacting and by the time they had, it was too late in comparison to their rivals.

The majority of our big supermarket chains were affected in some form as products disappeared. What it did suggest was that the lack of trust and knowledge should be aimed more in an argument between food production versus consumer rather than food seller versus consumer.

The top hierarchy at these stores should have had better knowledge but it isn’t their fault. Some areas of the media went for these guys and that was slightly unfair. The supermarkets did what they could in a very tricky and difficult situation for everyone. 

Still in these particular crisis stories, this is when social media can be at its best or even its worse and Twitter was the best place to find out what people were thinking. Below are three examples. Take your pick to decide what you thought was humorous or below the belt;

Its_Death Steve Death

Findus lasagne contains horse meat. I'd check the spaghetti bologneighs as well.  

StephenMorley Stephen Morley

Food scandal for vegetarians: radish found to be up to 100% horseradish  

GraemeGarden1 Graeme Garden

What's the fuss? For years we've been told that Ready Meals contain too much Salt and Shergar. #findus  

What lessons have been learned?

A year on, have lessons been learned from the fallout? That is open to debate. I feel that the supermarkets have moved on and it sounds like their Christmas sales showed marked improvements apart from Morrisons. The food production chains at those affected such as Findus might not ever recover from these setbacks. It will be a scar that will be with them at least in psychological form for a very long time.

For the consumer, it probably means we take a bit more time in supermarkets buying our products in the weekly shop or via online if the hustle bustle of the crowds is too much. Trust was broken, damage done but not something that can’t ever been fixed.

The horsemeat scandal of 2013 was a horrible story to hear about and a distasteful episode for the food industry. With the lack of prosecutions and the way the story disappeared from the newspapers, websites and bulletins after the end of February last year, it is difficult to say much if lessons have been learned. Hopefully, it will lead to more care and dedication taken to ensure that things like this do not and will not happen again. The people accused of the ‘criminal activity’ have to take the responsibility for their actions. It was bad but thankfully, didn't cause any deaths.

Categories: Aldi, ASDA, David Cameron, DNA, Dutch, Europe, Findus, Horsemeat, Lasagne, Tesco, UK

News 2013 - Worldwide tragedies and a Royal arrival

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

2013 in news was another dramatic year and sadly another one where human tragedy was at the forefront. Civil conflicts in countries, mixed in with one of the worst tropical cyclones in history, international terrorism and the deaths of some huge historical figures meant it was a year of distressing stories.

However the worldwide economy seems to be making some form of recovery and along with the end of a long British sporting drought, a fine summer of weather in the UK and the arrival of a Royal baby, there were some happy and positive stories to come out of this calendar year.

Here is Viewing Perspectives’ round-up of the news review of 2013.

The Federal Government shutdown made Barack Obama's year difficult

The year started well enough for American president Barack Obama as he had his second inauguration ceremony in Washington after being elected for a second term at the backend of 2012. If only Obama knew that this was to be the high point of a tough year at the helm. In October, the US government shutdown for the first time since 1995 and lasted for 16 days. This was after the Democratic and Republic parties were unable to agree on measures to keep the government operating. This led to some historic landmarks across the States such as the Grand Canyon (notice pictured) being closed to tourists and leaving Obama completely powerless. 

Obama wasn’t the only worldwide leader to either be re-elected or come into power for the first time. Merkel won a historic third term in German office as Chancellor, though not by an overall majority for her party to take full control of the country. In Zimbabwe, President Robert Mugabe swept back into office once again after another landslide success. China’s parliament formally elected Xi Jinping as their new president in March whilst presidential elections were held in Iran in June – a crucial election for both the country and the world given their stance on the use of nuclear power. With 51 per cent of the vote, Hassan Rouhani from the Combatant Clergy Association party emerged triumphant.

Other political powers didn’t see out the year though. In Venezuela, Hugo Chavez died in March. The capital of Caracas stood at a standstill on the day of his funeral. Chavez had strained relations with world countries but was dearly loved and adored in his native homeland. Over 30 world leaders paid their respects at the state funeral. There were more protests over government rulings in Arab countries. Fighting broke out once again in Egypt this summer as Hosni Mubarak’s successor Mohamed Morsi was overthrown in a military coup, just over two years after arriving in office. The Egyptian people were angry that little had changed since the first uprising in 2011. Violence followed for days in the capital Cairo. It was a similar story in the Central African Republic. Their president Francois Bozize fled to the Democratic Republic of Congo after rebel forces managed to take control of the capital Bangui. The biggest political change though came in the Catholic Church. On February 28, Benedict XVI resigned as pope, becoming the first to do so in nearly 600 years. Ill health was stated as the official reason for his sudden departure. After two weeks of guessing, the 266^th pope was revealed as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, taking on the name Pope Francis. He is the first from the Southern Hemisphere to take the role as head of the Catholic Church and led to great scenes in the Vatican City afterwards.

Back home and it was a quieter year for the major political parties with no serious scandals that divided parliament. Party conference season in the autumn came and went, with Labour making promises about freezing gas and energy prices if they get into power at the 2015 General Election. David Cameron’s response was to pledge for taxes to be cut for working class people. Chancellor George Osbourne, who was on rocky ground 12 months ago had a better year as the economy started to show signs of a slow but steady recovery. This was backed up by the autumn statement with fuel duty axed, although the retirement age did rise to 70. One of the biggest reactions in Downing Street was the introduction of the titled ‘bedroom tax’ in April which would see people being taxed more for having bedrooms that were not being used. Online campaigns were set-up and peaceful demonstrations made outside the Royal Courts of Justice. The government would later state that the changes to the housing benefit scheme were required but special dispensation cases would be made for those suffering from ill health or other exceptional circumstances.

The big political story in the UK was that of the death of a former power in the 20^th century. After suffering another stroke in the Ritz hotel in April, Margaret Thatcher died aged 87. The reaction to the death of Britain’s longest-serving PM of the last century was mixed with some burning effigies and celebrating her passing. Others were left to mourn Thatcher’s death with dignity. She had left her mark on this country. Her ruthlessness had led to some great success such as the Falklands War victory in 1982 and was ultimately her biggest downfall with the Poll Tax policy that led to riots eight years later. Thatcher has a legacy that shouldn’t be tarnished, though it is understandable why some like the mining industry didn’t share a tear on hearing of her passing. The ‘Iron Lady’ was no more.

Thatcher wasn’t the only huge name to pass away. Other shock deaths including Hollywood actor Paul Walker, singer Bernie Nolan, broadcaster Sir David Frost and South African model and TV personality Reeva Steenkamp – found dead after being shot by her boyfriend Oscar Pretorius on Valentine’s Day at the Pretoria home of the ‘Blade Runner.’ The Paralympic competitor is believed to have fired shots through a door, mistaking Steenkamp for an intruder in his home. The events were tragic and the episode a mystery. The trial will begin early next year in South Africa. By the end of the year though, South Africa was paying its respects to its greatest human-being and for the world, one of its most influential figures.

Nelson Mandela had endeared himself to so many on this planet. He did so much for his country and the world as a whole. South Africa’s first black president died on December 5, aged 95 after spending much of the year fighting a lung infection. He was admitted to hospital three times as his health started to decline rapidly. In June, his condition was described as ‘serious’ by doctors and he returned home to spend the final months of his life with his family. The tributes that flowed in worldwide were overwhelming and show the appreciation so many had for Nelson Mandela. He was laid to rest 10 days later after several days of national mourning and a memorial service in the Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg, the setting of his last public appearance three years ago. He will be dearly missed by so many people.

International terrorism remains sadly a forefront of our news. In April, everyone was stunned by the attacks carried out by Islamic forces on the finishing straight of the Boston Marathon. Two bombs went off in quick succession as many were completing the marathon. 264 people were injured and three people were killed. Five months later, it was Kenya’s time to be in the spotlight for the wrong reasons as the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi came under fire from Islamic militants. The three-day siege saw some harrowing pictures on our television screens as 170 people were wounded and 62 people killed. The Islamic group Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack.

There was plenty of tragedy throughout the year worldwide on a human and Mother Nature scale. In January, a deadly fire at a Kiss nightclub in Santa Maria, Brazil killed 241 people. Brazilian police confirmed two months later that 16 people were to be prosecuted for the disaster, started when the member of a band lit a firework that caught fire on the ceiling and spread in a matter of seconds. In the Russian city of Chelyabinsk, 1,491 were injured as a meteor exploded over their town with many buildings destroyed. It was the most powerful meteor to strike the atmosphere of the Earth in over a century. April brought the building collapse of a commercial building in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. The accident was the third worst industrial disaster in history, leaving 2,500 injured and 1,129 people dead as the eight-story building came down. Many stores on the high street here like Primark and Mango paid out compensation to the families of the victims. Oklahoma City in the United States was hit by a severe tornado in May, the country’s worst in two years. 237 were left injured as a suburb was virtually wiped out. At least 24 died, including nine children. A supermarket roof collapsed in the Latvian capital Riga following the carrying out of structural work. 54 people died and the incident was so distressing to the PM Valdis Dombrovskis, he tendered his resignation with immediate effect. Lastly the people of Spain were left in mourning in July as a high-speed train crashed in the North West region of Santiago de Compostela. 79 passengers lost their lives as CCTV cameras showed the moment the train left the tracks, caused by the driver going too fast on a track not designed for the speeds he was travelling at.

However there were three other incidents that were gruesome, shocking and left either outrage or heartfelt donations. In May the town of Woolwich made the headlines after the absolutely horrific killing of soldier Lee Rigby. The pictures of his dead body lying in the road were broadcast to millions, leaving many people absolutely sickened by this act carried out on the 25-year-old. It was a knife attack while he made his way through south east London. 29-year-old Michael Adebolajo and 22-year-old Michael Adebowale are currently on trial for his murder. Meanwhile events in Syria continued to dominate many of the front pages of the newspapers and TV bulletins as the year progressed. The world was appalled to hear about an alleged chemical attack carried out by the Assad regime on August 21 in Damascus. The world condemned the attacks. A month later, inspectors from the United Nations confirmed the use of chemical weapons after some intense investigations. The civil war in the country claimed many more lives throughout the year and many natives have fled in a desperate attempt to either start again and in many cases to survive. November saw Mother Nature show her true force once again. One of the most powerful storms in history was recorded as the Philippines was battered by Typhoon Haiyan. Small towns were literally wiped out and thousands died in this tropical cyclone which was a reminder to many of this force following the earthquake that left Haiti in ruins three years ago and the tsunami in Japan in 2011. At least 5,700 were confirmed to have died and many more have had their livelihoods completely shattered. Aid started arriving from all areas across the globe as the planet came together to try and help the Philippine people. The US has already pledged over $100m to help those now trying to fend off the severe threats of contracting diseases.

In Britain, January brought terror to morning commuters in London as a helicopter crashed into a crane on top of one of Europe’s tallest residential blocks in Vauxhall. On a foggy Wednesday morning as many were making their way to work for a normal day, that aspect changed when debris ploughed down onto the nearby roads and wreckage spread across the area. Nine were injured and two lost their lives. There was a more tragic loss of life in Glasgow at the end of November as 10 people were killed when a police helicopter crashed into a pub on a busy Friday evening. In both instances, community spirit was shown in abundance to come to terms with these shocking events. The incident in London was down to the weather conditions and pilot error. The cause of the Glasgow crash is still unknown.

Findus' Beef Lasagne was one product caught up in the horsemeat scandal

One issue totally unexpected in this country but caused plenty of concern was the horsemeat scandal throughout January and into February. It started when food inspectors in the Republic of Ireland claimed they had found horsemeat in frozen beefburgers which had been sold by a number of supermarket chains over here, including Iceland, Tesco and Aldi. In the weeks that followed, more cases came out of detected horsemeat in ingredients with major suppliers including Nestle and Findus (Beef Lasagne product pictured) being forced to recall products as tests confirmed traces of horse DNA. Some brushed it off, others cried foul and it certainly damaged the trust relationship between the consumer and the main supermarkets. Some 2,501 tests were conducted in the aftermath of all this - health experts saying the cases were down to negligence in food production rather than the safety of customers eating the products. In total, there were 29 positive results in seven products – all withdrawn as soon as news broke. Then it all blew away like a storm in a teacup. However it would leave a mark on the food industry for the remainder of the year. The phone hacking trial began towards the end of the year. Eight journalists including former senior editors of the News of the World Andy Coulson and Rebekah Brooks are among those on trial. One of the early reveals of the evidence given was a love letter that confirmed that Coulson and Brooks had an affair for at least six years from the late 1990s. The trial will continue well into next year.

While the UK’s economy started to settle down again with unemployment levels dropping to their lowest level since the spring of 2009, it wasn’t so good for Cyprus. In March the EU agreed to a bailout of €10 billion after a banking crisis hit the island on the Mediterranean which left people with restricted access to bank accounts. The EU also got a new member in July as Croatia became the 28^th member of the organisation.

Other news stories to make the headlines saw the end of British sport’s longest drought without a winner. Andy Murray ended the 77 years of hurt when he defeated Novak Djokovic of Serbia in straight sets to become the Wimbledon Men’s Singles champion. There was a summer success for England’s cricketers against Australia in the Ashes before surrendering the urn meekly before Christmas Down Under. Chris Froome became the second Brit in a row to win the Tour de France and football’s greatest manager retired at the top as Sir Alex Ferguson stood aside as Manchester United manager after leading the Red Devils in May to a 13^th Premier League title. The city of Hull was named as the next UK City of Culture in November. It held off competition from Leicester, Dundee and Swansea to take the coveted prize for the year 2017. Tokyo was announced as the host of the 2020 Olympic Games at an IOC meeting in Buenos Aires in the summer and a new appeal was launched to find missing Madeleine McCann following 100 calls and e-mails to the BBC’s Crimewatch programme after a reconstruction of events was broadcasted. She was taken from a holiday apartment in Portugal six years ago.

William and Kate pose with their bundle of joy, Prince George of Cambridge

There was no competition though for what was the happiest news story of the year and that came in July as the country welcomed Prince George of Cambridge. Ever since the announcement of Kate Middleton’s pregnancy, there had been plenty of talk about baby's sex and potential names. The baby boy was born at St Mary’s Hospital to their proud parents, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (all three pictured) on the evening of Monday, 22 July. As predicted, a media scrum waited outside for the first shots of the new arrival to the Royal Family and with it, the future King of England. George received a private Christening in October and baby and parents are still doing well nearly six months on. It is stories like this that remind us that while the year in news is often controlled by bad headlines, it sometimes is the good and happy stories that can leave the biggest mark and best memories of a calendar year.

This man will NOT be the UK's Prime Minister in 2014!

With that in mind, that is the news review of 2013. It had plenty to lookback on and now, we wait what 2014 will bring. There is bound to be another scandal in the country somewhere, the Commonwealth Games arrive in Glasgow, Scotland votes for independence and I can guarantee you all that this man (Ed Miliband pictured) will NOT be prime minister by this time next year. Other than that, who knows what will happen but happier times wouldn’t go amiss. 

Categories: 2013, Barack Obama, Boston Marathon, Economy, Horsemeat, Kate Middleton, Margaret Thatcher, News, Prince William, UK