I\u2019ll start this week\u2019s blog with a joke I overheard: A man walks into a burger bar and orders a beef quarter pounder. The counter assistant asks him \u201cDo you want anything on that?\u201d The man replies \u201cI\u2019ll have a fiver each way, please.\u201d<\/p>\n
This joke has of course arisen since the revelation that up to 20% of horse DNA has been found to be present in beef burgers produced by the company Silvercrest, a part of the ABP Group, which also includes Dalepak. Supermarket giant Tesco has consequently dropped Silvercrest as a supplier citing a \u2018breach of trust.\u2019 The horse meat had been traced to a Polish supplier and although the traces of horsemeat were not found to be contaminated<\/a>, the company was not on Tesco\u2019s approved supplier list.<\/p>\n Tesco was not the only company which used Silvercrest as a supplier of burgers \u2013 Aldi, Lidl, Iceland and Burger King were also customers of the meat processor, which produces 20,000 tonnes of burgers every year. As a result of the scandal, more than 10 million beef burgers<\/a> are believed to have been removed from sale and Tesco has now pledged to conduct DNA testing on all its meat products, to regain customer trust.<\/p>\n This episode is a salutary tale to all and highlights the importance of auditing and the power of the large supermarkets. Silvercrest has now lost credibility and one assumes a lucrative income in one fell swoop. BRC and other external auditing are ultimately there to protect the end-user. Suppose the product components can\u2019t be traced and are untested. In that case, there is the potential to deceive the customer, \u00a0produce food labelling which is incorrect and cause potential harm (remember the BSE crisis?)<\/p>\n Our next Supplier Auditing<\/a> course runs on the 22nd<\/sup> March.<\/strong> It includes the purpose of auditing, including liaison with suppliers and understanding the cost benefits; the audit process i.e. all steps from audit scheduling through to audit reporting; auditing outside the UK; priority, risk and due diligence; and real-life examples of common industry failings. This course is invaluable if you\u2019re responsible for auditing your company\u2019s new or existing clients. We are currently offering a ‘Buy One Get One Half Price’<\/em><\/span> offer on this Supplier Auditing course in March 2013. Contact us now or book now online<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Also available through Verner Wheelock Associates is a Lead Auditor<\/a> course on 23 – 26 April 2013 and Auditing Skills<\/a>\u00a0(Internal Auditing)\u00a0on 20 – 21 June 2013.<\/p>\n The FSA has admitted that the horse meat filler could have been in the burgers for over a year, which means that, like it or not, the British and Irish public could have been eating horse for some time. Had Tesco not requested the DNA tests, then we would have been none the wiser. Luckily the horse meat was clean and did not contain any veterinary drugs or other contaminants, but this is the danger of using unsolicited suppliers.<\/p>\n The public relies on the food products being sold to them as being safe, being tested and being labelled correctly so that they can make an informed choice. A vegetarian would be horrified to find out that meat derivatives were included in a vegeburger, but not disclosed on the ingredient listing. Similarly, had \u2018horse meat\u2019 been listed in the beef burger ingredients, then it\u2019s likely that some people would not have been bothered, whilst others would be in an uproar.<\/p>\nThe importance of auditing<\/h3>\n
How do we really know what we\u2019re eating?<\/h3>\n
Why do we eat some meat but not others?<\/h3>\n