Horse meat has been found in products across Europe, including in Swedish meatballs in the Czech Republic Shutterstock

After weeks of denying that Poland could be the source of the horse meat that was found to have contaminated beef products throughout Europe, Polish officials last week had to eat their words.

Polish veterinary authorities confirmed that they had found horse DNA in three out of the 121 samples they tested from Polish meat-processing facilities. As of press time, an additional 80 samples were still being tested. Two of the contaminated samples came from Polish meat suppliers and one from a Dutch company, officials said.

The scandal first broke in January, when British and Irish officials found horse DNA in various meat products. The food producers involved pointed the finger squarely at suppliers in Poland. But until last week, tests at Polish facilities had found no traces of horse DNA, leading Polish politicians to vehemently deny those claims.

However, Poland’s General Veterinary Inspectorate confirmed that the Polish facilities in whose products horse DNA was found were involved in the export of products to Germany, Italy, Ireland and the United Kingdom.

But there is still plenty of doubt as to whether Poland is the source of the horse meat or just a link in a complex global chain. With each passing week, the list of countries involved in the scandal grows. Russian officials now say they have found traces of horse DNA in hot dogs imported from Austria.

Indeed, the scandal has spread well beyond Europe. As a result of the uproar, South African health authorities have stepped up random tests on meat sold in supermarkets. The results? Traces of donkey, goat and water buffalo have been found in meat products there.

Swedish furniture retailer IKEA has also been bucked by the scandal. After Czech authorities found horse DNA in frozen meatballs produced by a Swedish company that supplies many IKEA stores, the furniture maker withdrew them from its restaurants in several European countries, as well as in Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia and the Dominican Republic.

Jacek Ciesnowski