Burger King Cuts Ties With Irish Meat Distributor Linked To Horsemeat Scandal

Burger King is cutting ties with a meat supplier in Ireland linked to the current horsemeat scandal in the UK.

The ABP Food Group has come under fire for using horsemeat as an ingredient in beef patties supplied to supermarkets and restaurants. Burger King is cutting ties with the meat distributor based in County Monaghan.

Burger King claims that dissolving their relationship with ABP Food Group and its subsidiaries is not because of foot safety issues.

According to BBC News, Burger King is making the move as a preventative measure to ensure their food remains the highest quality possible.

For its part, ABP Food Group claims there is no evidence that its meat supplied to Burger King is contaminated. However, Tesco burgers made with meat supplied by ABP were found by food safety officials in Ireland to contain 29% horsemeat.

At this point in time ABP has focused its own investigation internally. Three plants are in question for supplying horsemeat to supermarkets and restaurants; Liffey Meat, Silvercrest Foods and Dalepak Hambleton.

Silvercrest and Dalepak maintain their innocence. Both have said they never traded with companies that supply horsemeat and have launched their own investigations into third party suppliers.

Burger King has not announced who it will turn to supply meat now it is no longer affiliated with ABP Food Group.

So, what about American consumers. The Burger King burgers in question are only in the restaurant’s UK chains. The horsemeat scandal has not spread overseas into the US yet.

What do you think? Is Burger King overreacting to the current horsemeat investigation in the UK?

[image via ShutterStock]