Selling horsemeat as beef: Should we be concerned about this malpractice?

Last year there was food scandal involving the selling of horsemeat as beef to consumers. The scandal implicated a number of British supermarkets including Tesco, Aldi, Lidl and Iceland which were selling beef products contaminated with horsemeat. The vast majority of people were surprised about the extent of this malpractice but were not too alarmed over the revelation. Almost one year has elapsed since the scandal and nothing serious has been done about the case. Should we consider this revelation involving the substitution of horsemeat for beef very seriously and should the government do more to reduce the chances of it recurring?

When interviewed, a number of people stated that the selling of horsemeat as beef is a tip of the iceberg in terms of malpractices that occur within the meat industry. They concluded that the industry is too large and the government cannot do anything about it. It is true that the extent of food malpractice in the meat industry may be more widespread than the public are aware of, but arguing that the government cannot do anything about the malpractices is like arguing that there should be no punishment for drivers who over-speed because many drivers tend to exceed the speed limit. There are a number of good reasons for punishing food producers that sell horse meat as beef.

Some horses are not fit for consumption. These include horses that are bred for racing. Horses bred for the purpose of racing are usually treated with bute, which is an anti-inflammatory drug. While it is good for horses, bute is harmful to humans. When it is consumed, bute can cause a serious health disorder in humans called aplastic anaemia, which is characterised by the inability of the bone marrow to produce enough blood cells. Unfortunately, consumers are at a high risk of ingesting this dangerous substance as they cannot distinguish between adulterated and non-adulterated meat.

Consuming unfit horsemeat is also costly to the economy. Consumers who become ill after eating horsemeat contaminated with bute cannot work and contribute to the economy. In addition, the cost of treating these patients is a drain on the purse of the respective country. The question now is how can adulterated horsemeat be stopped from entering into the food chain?

There are two possible ways of reducing the likelihood of adulterated horsemeat from entering into the food chain. First, food inspectors should regularly make unannounced visits to food production sites where meat is being processed to ensure compliance with food regulations. Second, the effort of collecting samples of meat products already on the market to the laboratories for analysis should be doubled. Let us not deny the fact. These measures will be costly to the economy in terms of the wages for people conducting the inspections and analysis. That notwithstanding, the benefits to be derived from having these measures in place are far greater than the cost of not having such measures.

We should all be concerned about the meat products we purchase from retailers. We should be concerned not only because we pay for such meat but because consuming unfit meat products can be detrimental to our health.Lastly, allowing meat malpractices to flourish in the meat industry will only benefit criminals involve in these unacceptable behaviour