The Dutch meat industry – from slaughterhouse to shops – is putting economic factors above food safety, according to the Dutch safety board Onderzoeksraad voor de Veiligheid.

The damning report says there is widespread fraud with meat and hygiene rules are often ignored because of a lack of time or education. ‘The government is wrong to assume companies will take more responsibility for food safety on themselves,’ the council says.

The investigators were told by several players they are forced to take risks ‘because large parties like retailers put pressure on prices’. Anyone buying meat at bargain prices – whether in the Netherlands or abroad – needs to be aware that this may come at a risk, the report states.

Slaughterhouses

‘The process in Dutch slaughterhouses offers little certainty to prevent unsafe meat reaching consumers,’ the report says. The problem also affects imported meat because food safety is not guaranteed everywhere and sampling procedures are not carried out carefully.

In addition, waste meat is often sold as meat fit for human consumption, the report says. Food safety inspectors at the NVWA are unable to act effectively because they have limited resources and are not given enough scope to develop into a proper authority.

 ‘The council recommends the cabinet and NVWA make concrete agreements with the meat industry to structurally improve food safety,’ the report states. Certification procedures should be tightened up and companies should make more ‘unannounced’ visits to their suppliers, the report said. 

Health impact

The report states it is difficult to say how serious the consequences of these failings are for public health because little is known about the number of people who fall ill from meat consumption.

‘However, what is known is that only a fraction of the true numbers of people falling ill are actually represented in the statistics,’ the report states. ‘Even less is known about the number of victims in the longer term’

The Dutch meat industry has been rocked by a string of scandals in recent months including fraud, beef contaminated with horse and faeces, and salmonella in salmon. 

Inspectors

Earlier this month, the head of the NVWA told the Financieele Dagblad there has been a disturbing number of incidents involving food in the Netherlands and meat product producers in particular have a lack of ethical awareness.

‘It has become normal to go as far as you can and hope you won’t get caught and that shows a blurring of standards,’ the organisation’s director Harry Paul told the Financieele Dagblad.

‘This has led to a number of serious shortcomings which delivers serious risks for the near future as well.’

Report summary in English