Share

Businessman in meat scandal gets 2-1/2 years jail

Amsterdam - The businessman at the centre of a Europe-wide fraud in which falsely labelled horsemeat led to thousands of tonnes of meat being recalled was sentenced to two and a half years in prison on Tuesday.

A Dutch court found that two meat wholesalers owned by Willy Selten had bought and processed a minimum of 330 tonnes of horsemeat in 2011 and 2012, selling it on to customers who believed they were buying pure beef.

"By selling largely to foreign buyers he contributed to a negative image of the Dutch beef industry, causing damage to the sector" for his own profit, the district court in Den Bosch said. Selten got half the jail term prosecutors had demanded.

Agriculture is crucial to the economy of the Netherlands, which, despite having a population of just 17 million people, is the world's second-largest agricultural exporter.

The horsemeat scandal broke in January 2013 after genetic tests found traces of horsemeat in burgers sold at two British supermarkets. Adulterated beef products were discovered across Europe, with suppliers in France and the Netherlands also found to have mislabelled horsemeat.

Selten had told the court that the mislabelling was due to carelessness and was unintentional. But the court rejected this explanation, pointing out that accounts and invoices did not indicate that the company dealt in horsemeat at all.

According to prosecutors, Selten's companies bought 300 tonnes of horsemeat from suppliers in the Netherlands, Ireland and Britain in 2011 and 2012, selling it to more than 500 companies across Europe.

The scandal led to at least 50 000 tonnes of meat being recalled across the region.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.98
-0.2%
Rand - Pound
24.08
+0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.59
+0.0%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.36
+0.5%
Rand - Yen
0.13
+0.6%
Platinum
904.45
+0.2%
Palladium
999.75
-0.6%
Gold
2,152.84
-0.4%
Silver
24.91
-0.5%
Brent Crude
86.89
+1.8%
Top 40
65,923
-0.5%
All Share
72,134
-0.4%
Resource 10
53,280
-0.1%
Industrial 25
99,477
-1.0%
Financial 15
16,643
+0.1%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders