Some 11,000 kilos of French horse meat which was not approved for human consumption ended up in the Netherlands last year, junior economic affairs minister Sharon Dijksma has told parliament.

The meat came from around 200 horses from the racing circuit, pharmaceuticals industry and private owners, the minister said in an update on food safety. The meat, given fake documentation, was delivered to five Dutch companies between January and October last year.

Some of the meat has been traced but the rest poses ‘very small risks’ to human health, government inspectors said.

Earlier in 2013, Dutch meat processors were embroiled in a massive meat fraud scandal involving horse meat which was passed off as beef.

Growth hormones

The minister also said food safety inspectors were launching extra checks on the trade in illegal growth hormones following the seizure of five kilos of chemicals used to make the banned hormone 17-beta oestradiol.

One person has been arrested in connection with the seizure.

And the discovery of illegal antibiotic use on a veal farm in Overijssel led to 770 young calves being removed from the food chain. Research is now being carried out on a further 1,600 older calves, the minister said.