Photo made Jan 16 2013 of two beef burgers purchased in Ireland, following an outcry over the revelation that some burgers made in the republic and on sale in British supermarkets contained a large proportion of horse meat. The burgers were swiftly withdrawn from sale. A Spanish supermarket chain has withdrawn its own-brand hamburgers Wednesday Jan 30 2013 after a consumer protection group also found tiny traces of horsemeat in them. (AP Photo/Niall Carson/PA) UNITED KINGDOM OUT NO SALES NO ARCHIVE
January 30, 2013 - 2:26 AM
LONDON - Britain's biggest supermarket chain says it is dropping a firm that supplied it with beef burgers contaminated with horsemeat.
Tesco says burgers from Ireland-based Silvercrest contained meat from an unauthorized supplier that came from outside the U.K. and Ireland, in violation of the grocer's policy.
Tesco called the issue a breach of trust and said in a statement Wednesday it would no longer buy products from Silvercrest.
The British and Irish food industries have been shaken by the discovery earlier this month of horse DNA in burgers supplied to several major retailers.
Silvercrest, which is owned by ABP Food Group, shut down its production line and recalled 10 million burgers from supermarket shelves.
Irish food authorities say they have traced the contamination to an ingredient from Poland.
News from © The Associated Press, 2013