Ikea says horsemeat in meatballs, pulls more dishes

STOCKHOLM (AFP) - Ikea said on Wednesday it was withdrawing more food products from its stores in Europe as tests confirmed the presence of horsemeat in its meatballs.

The Swedish furniture giant pulled its hot dogs in France, Spain, Britain, Ireland and Portugal, and two traditional dishes sold in Sweden: a veal patty known as "wallenbergare" and a cabbage beef casserole.

Earlier this week the company pulled its Ikea-brand one-kilogramme (2.2-pound) bags of frozen meatballs off its shelves and withdrew meatballs from its restaurants in 25 countries, primarily in Europe but also in parts of Asia and in the Dominican Republic after Czech authorities said they found traces of horse DNA in the product.

Ikea said its own tests had so far only shown the presence of horsemeat in its meatballs, but the other products were being removed because they were made by the same supplier as the meatballs, Swedish company Dafgaard.