Following the Food Standards Agency’s publication of the first set of industry results from tests of beef products for the presence of horse DNA, Environment Secretary Owen Paterson issued the following statement:

“It’s wholly unacceptable that if people buy products marked beef, they turn out to be horsemeat. That’s why it was so important to undertake this intensive testing activity to gain a meaningful picture.

“My concern is for consumers. The news for them today is that the vast majority of products tested are completely clear of horse DNA.

“Food businesses now have a lot of work to do. They need to move quickly to complete these tests and they need to show their customers they’ve taken the right steps to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”