Indonesia on Lookout for Horse Meat-Tainted Food

The Jakarta Globe, February 19, 2013


Indonesia’s health authority is investigating whether food products tainted with horse meat from the Swiss-based food giant Nestle have entered the country.

“We don’t have the information yet, the National Food and Drug Monitoring Agency [BPOM] is still conducting the investigation, but so far we haven’t found anything,” Health Minister Nafsiah Mboi said on Tuesday.

Nafsiah said she had ordered BPOM to conduct the investigation following reports that Nestle had to recall two chilled pasta products after a test found more than 1 percent horse DNA in the food products.

“This is a fairly new issue, that is why BPOM is conducting a probe. If we find it [horse-tainted food], we will immediately remove the products from the market,” she said.

Nestle is the latest food company hit by Europe’s widening horse meat scandal, withdrawing two types of pasta meal from supermarket shelves in Italy and Spain due to contamination.

The news came Monday as German discount chain Lidl pulled ready-made meals from the shelves of its Finnish, Danish, Swedish and Belgian stores, also confirming the presence of horse meat.

Meanwhile, the French firm that sparked the Europe-wide food alert by allegedly passing off 750 tons of horse meat as beef, was allowed to resume production of minced meat, sausages and ready-to-eat meals.