Burger King dumps Irish beef supplier caught peddling horsemeat

An Irish beef company has been cut from Burger King's list of approved UK suppliers after health officials discovered traces of horse DNA in meat sold by the wholesaler throughout Britain and Ireland.

Silvercrest Foods was also forced to recall 10 million burgers sold at groceries in the United Kingdom and Ireland and Burger King dumped its product as "a voluntary and precautionary measure," a company spokesman said, according to The Associated Press.

The Irish are blaming Europe; The Associated Press says food officials in Ireland fault an ingredient purchased from an unspecified European nation is likely to blame for the trace horsemeat element.

There is no risk to human health, food safety officials say.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The original headline and story incorrectly implied evidence of horsemeat had been discovered in burgers sold by Burger King. The Washington Times apologizes for the error. In a statement, Burger King said: "This past weekend we decided to replace all Silvercrest products in the UK & Ireland with products from another approved BURGER KING supplier. This is a voluntary and precautionary measure. We are working diligently to identify suppliers that can produce 100% pure Irish and British beef products that meet our high quality standards."

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