U.K. Environment Safety Secretary Owen Paterson has ordered a strategic review of food safety in response to the recent horsemeat scandal that has rocked the UK's food industry and reverberated across Europe, according to Bloomberg.
In a written statement to Parliament in London on Monday, Agriculture and Food Minister David Heath said the investigation will be "wide-ranging, to restore and maintain consumer confidence in the food chain and the responsibilities of food business and practice through the wider food chain, including: audit, testing, food authenticity, food safety and health issues."
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The scandal first erupted after beef products sold in some of the major supermarkets in Britain and fast-food chain Burger King were found to contain horsemeat, leading to a number of tests and thorough investigations into suppliers.
Paterson has received criticism from the opposing Labour Party about his handling of the scandal, in particular the slow testing of beef products.
