Posted on 02/01/2013 9:22:01 PM PST by DeaconBenjamin
The Ministry of Justice is suspending a supplier of meat to prisons after it discovered that halal pies and pasties sourced from a properly halal certificated supplier may contain traces of pork.
The products concerned have been withdrawn immediately, a spokesman said.
He added: "All prisons have been informed about this very regrettable incident and we reported this issue to the Food Standards Agency immediately.
"We are taking immediate steps to suspend the contract with the relevant subcontractor."
Justice minister Jeremy Wright said: "This is an absolutely unacceptable situation and one which we regret greatly. Clearly this must be distressing for those affected and they can be reassured we are doing everything we can to resolve the situation. The prison service is investigating this as a matter of urgency.
"The FSA has been informed that a number of meat pies and pasties supplied to UK prisons which were labelled and served as halal contained traces of pork DNA. The local authority is investigating how this contamination came about and whether these products have been distributed further across the UK."
This related to the local authority where the supplier is based, she said. She declined to say which one it was.
On a more general theme relating to recent stories about mis-description of food, she said: "People have a right to expect that the food they are eating is correctly described. We have called an urgent meeting of major retailers and suppliers on Monday to ensure that everyone is fully aware of their responsibilities.
"It is the responsibility of food businesses to ensure the food they sell contains what it says on the label. We are considering, with relevant local authorities, whether legal action is appropriate following the investigation."
The Prison Reform Trust said it welcomed the immediate apology and investigation.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Any woman who can do that is very talented!
Well, some people are just talented.
Oh my Allah! The easiest way to prevent this in the future is to completely ban pork in the UK.
Somewhat chewy.
Don't ask me how I know this.
Did you hear about this, PORK DNA was food in food for MUSLIM PRISONERS in the UK that was supposed to be HALAL (Muslim Kosher). Why they were even testing the DNA of the meat is a mystery to me.
The government is right miffed because the dietary needs of criminal scum are very important to them.
I say feed them nothing BUT pork, I’m mean like that.
That struck me as weird too — who came up with the idea of doing the DNA testing?
Next time, add Ricin to their food, and there won’t be any more complaints.
Thanks Impy.
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