Bacon giant Tulip has moved to reassure customers its UK products are not affected by the horsemeat scandal, after two products it withdrew from Germany tested positive for horse DNA.

The company asked German retailers to pull the two frozen ready meals - lasagne bolognese and cannelloni bolognese - as a precaution two weeks ago, while DNA test results were pending. The results had now shown the products contained “traces of horsemeat above the 1% guideline”, a spokesman for Tulip said.

Although the products were supplied by Tulip, they were manufactured by French manufacturer Comigel, the same company that also made the 100% horsemeat lasagne for Findus.

Tulip stressed the two products had never been on sale in the UK. “Moreover, Tulip’s UK operation does not supply any third-party ready meals, and can confirm that none of its products are affected by this development in Germany,” the spokesman added.

Tulip’s announcement comes as Lidl this week had to withdraw a number of products from different European countries after finding horsemeat. The discounter told The Grocer it had also removed from sale one Coquette tinned ravioli product and one Coquette tinned goulash in the UK as a precaution because they were made by the same German supplier, but stressed the products had tested negative for horse in the UK.

Aldi Süd and Aldi Nord pulled a total of five products in Germany this week - two tinned goulash products, tinned Cucina ravioli and two frozen pasta products - after they tested positive for horse, but the discount chain said none of these were available in the UK and Ireland.

Topics