| Abstract: |
DNA samples will be taken from every beef cow in Scotland as experts attempt to establish a database of the nation’s livestock. Under the plan, inspectors would be able to test meat from butchers, supermarkets and even restaurants by comparing DNA ito see if products being marketed as Scotch beef are genuine. Government-funded body Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) has taken the first steps towards DNA testing by advertising for scientists to carry out a year-long study into the “potential introduction of a DNA traceability system for Scotch beef”.Scotch beef such as Aberdeen Angus and Belted Galloway attract premium prices of around six per cent higher than meat from other countries. In the past, “fake steak” from cheaper foreign beef has been illegally repackaged and sold as Scottish, with farmers north of the Border estimated to have lost out on millions of pounds. The DNA traceability system would see a sample drawn from each animal after slaughter and stored on a central database. |
