IKEA suspends sausage sale in Russia due to horsemeat

IKEA, the world's top furniture retailer, has suspended sales of sausages in its specialty restaurants in Russia after samples have revealed presence of horsemeat samples, the company said on Thursday. It said that traces of horsemeat have been found in sausages produced by one of its two Russian suppliers. No horsemeat has been found in sausages or meatballs produced by the other supplier, IKEA said in a statement, adding that additional sausage samples have been sent to a laboratory for testing. In late February, the retailer suspended sales of meatballs in their restaurants in some European countries after Czech veterinarians found that this traditional Swedish dish, contrary to its recipe, contained horsemeat. Meatballs from the same shipment from the Czech Republic were sent to Belgium, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia and France. Later, the company announced it was withdrawing meatballs from its restaurants in Asia and the Caribbean, particularly from Thailand, Hong Kong and the Dominican Republic. The scandal in the European Union broke early in the year after horsemeat was found in the Spanish brand AhorraMas burgers and Irish Silvercrest Foods. After a series of tests, horsemeat was detected in beef products in France, Germany, Italy and Sweden.