Ikea Recalls Meatballs After Detection of Horse Meat (Published 2013) (2024)

FAQs

Does Ikea put horse meat in their meatballs? ›

Czech authorities alerted the discount furniture maker that they had found horsemeat in a sample of meatballs, and Ikea subsequently pulled the product from stores in 14 countries.

The 2013 horse meat scandal was a food industry scandal in parts of Europe in which foods advertised as containing beef were found to contain undeclared or improperly declared horse meat—as much as 100% of the meat content in some cases. A smaller number of products also contained other undeclared meats, such as pork.

The latest discovery was made by the Swedish furniture giant IKEA. Inspectors in the Czech Republic said Monday they found traces of horse meat in frozen meatballs made in Sweden for the furniture maker.

STOCKHOLM - Swedish furniture giant Ikea became entangled in Europe's widening meat scandal Monday, forced to withdraw meatballs from stores across Europe amid suspicions that they contained horse meat. Stores in the U.S. and Canada were not affected, Ikea said.

Is Horse Meat Illegal in the United States? While it is not illegal for someone in most states to eat meat from horses, there are very strict rules surrounding its purchase. It is illegal for someone in the United States to sell meat from a horse for commercial human consumption.

Like many other things in business, selling inexpensive meatballs is a strategy for the company to turn more profit. To sell their products, they need to get people in the door. To do that, they entice people with cheap meatballs.

Taco Bell has officially joined Club Horse Meat. The fast-food chain and subsidiary of Yum Brands says it has found horse meat in some of the ground beef it sells in the United Kingdom. The British Food Standards Agency said Taco Bell's products contained more than 1% (pdf) horse meat.

Horse meat is commonly eaten in many countries in Europe and Asia. It is not a generally available food in some English-speaking countries such as the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, the United States, and English Canada. It is also taboo in Brazil, Ireland, Poland and Israel and among the Romani.

Federally, horses can legally be slaughtered for food. But because they're classed as an "amenable species," horse meat can't be sold or shipped without inspection — and there is currently no legal process by which that inspection may take place. However, in the U.S., consuming horse meat is completely legal.

Steps for the meatballs

Combine beef and pork mince until all lumps are smoothed. Add finely chopped onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, egg and mix. Then add milk and salt and pepper to taste. Grab small handfuls and roll into a ball shape.

Did Vikings eat Swedish meatballs? ›

Swedish meatballs aren't just from Ikea, they were also a popular Viking dish.

While both varieties include ingredients such as grated onion and panade (milk-soaked bread) or bread crumbs, plus the usual salt and pepper, Swedish meatballs traditionally use spices like allspice, nutmeg, white pepper, and sometimes ground ginger as flavoring.

"As soon as we received information from the Czech authorities, we stopped sales of that particular production batch," Ikea spokeswoman Ylva Magnusson told the Journal. "Our own checks have shown no traces of horse meat.

There is probably no other dish that is so connected to Swedish cuisine, as meatballs with cream sauce and lingonberry jam.

Developed with meat lovers in mind, the plant ball is made from pea protein, oats, potato and apple. The meaty taste is achieved by adding umami flavors, such as mushroom, tomato and roasted vegetables.

The mild flavor of Ikea's meatballs comes from allspice, (a spice similar to cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg), which the sweet and slightly tart lingonberry jam goes with perfectly.