Iceland must ensure that food products are correctly labeled or risk damaging tourism, according to Dr. Sveinn Margeirsson, the director of Matís Icelandic Food and Biotech Research and Development Company.
Photo: Eygló Svala Arnarsdóttir/Iceland Review.
“We can only speculate what kind of impact this would have if Icelandic manufacturers of marine products were caught up in such matters. It should also be noted that it would not encourage tourists to visit Iceland if food production and distribution is not in order,” Sveinn said.
The issue of fake or counterfeit food products was discussed at a conference on food safety earlier this week, ruv.is reports.
Dr. Heiner Lehr, an expert on food safety, said that incorrect food labeling does not usually pose a serious risk although it is difficult to ensure that it is done correctly. There are no controls or a single solution to the matter.
Food labeling has been in the spotlight since the horse meat scandal in Europe came to light in February.
In Iceland, tests revealed that there was no horse in the 16 products tested, but, as it turned out, no meat at all in one brand of beef pie and no garlic in a French-style garlic dish.
Related:
05.03.2013 No Meat in Meat Pie, no Garlic in Garlic Dish
27.02.2013 No Meat in Icelandic Beef Pies
ZR
