The European horsemeat scandal has already affected food giants like Burger King, Nestle and Tesco. Add Ikea stores to the list as the retail giant has removed horsemeat tainted meatballs from its famous lunch counters in thirteen countries throughout the European Union. However, Americans can relax since an American supplier provides meat that Ikea sells in U.S. stores. According to a Feb. 25 article in the LA Times, Ikea's American meatballs have beef and pork that comes only from Canadian and U.S. animals.
A Feb. 25 BBC News report said the Czech State Veterinary Administration found horsemeat in 2.2lb (1kg) packages of meatballs that were made in Sweden and shipped to Ikea stores in the Czech Republic and twelve other EU nations. Supplier Familjen Dafgard sold the product as a beef and pork item. The packaged product went to Ikea stores in Cyprus, Greece, Hungary, Slovakia, France, the UK, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Italy and Ireland.
The major concern about unregulated and illegal horsemeat in Europe is that certain drugs and equine diseases may be present to make the meat unsafe for humans.
The entire horsemeat scandal has spread to enormous proportions throughout the European Union, exposing an extremely complicated sourcing and distribution system that needs much better regulation. While Sweden and the Czech Republic are just the newest locations where inspectors found equine evidence in packaged foods, the European horsemeat scandal started with an Irish company in January.
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