The representative of the food safety authority said that Lido had received a total of 27 kilos of beef, of which nine kilos still remained at the company's storehouse and 18 kilos had been sent to foodservice providers.
Mestere said that Lido will destroy the meat that is being kept at the storehouse. A probe is under way to trace the remaining 18 kilograms to establish if this meat has already been used for making meals.
The representative of the Food and Veterinary Service assured that the meat is not dangerous for human health if it has been cooked.
"A tracing system provided by the company enabled the service to quickly establish the remaining amount of the purchased ingredient and in which products the meat has been used, as well as to ensure that the ingredient and products are recalled from the market," Meistere said.
Panorama, the evening news program of Latvian Television, reported January 31 that sick cows had been illegally butchered at a slaughterhouse in Poland to be exported as beef. Representatives of the Food and Veterinary Service commented that Latvia imports virtually no fresh beef from Poland and that most of the beef imported from Poland is processed meat which has undergone additional checks.
Lido was founded in 1991, the company's share capital is €992,428. Gunārs Ķirsons is the largest shareholder with approximately 75% stake. Lido Group is made up of 13 restaurants and three stores in Rīga and in the vicinity of the city, as well as three restaurants in Tallinn, two Kirsons restaurants and a production facility in Berlin, and a meat production facility, confectionery and brewery in Riga.
