Boost for Greencore after horsemeat tests come back negative

Irish food group Greencore’s shares galloped ahead today after it said that tests had found no other traces of horsemeat in products at its facilities.

Shares in Greencore tumbled by more than 12% in the second half  of last week to 92.5p after small traces of horse DNA were  identified in Asda’s own-brand beef bolognese sauce, which the grocer withdrew from its shelves, at its Bristol facility.

The supplier today said that all other tests on its products had been negative, adding that “none of its other 21 convenience foods sites have been affected”.

The scandal has snared many of the UK’s biggest retailers including Tesco and Aldi, although all have withdrawn products and stepped up rigorous testing. At the weekend, Malcolm Walker, the  chief executive of frozen food  chain Iceland, waded into the row  by claiming that hospitals, schools and prisons should be “blamed”  for the horsemeat scandal for “driving down” food quality to  slash costs.

Greencore also said it was “implementing additional species screening procedures in its supply chain for beef-related ingredients going into all Greencore facilities”.

The group’s shares jumped by 6.5p, or 7%, to 99p today.

Numis said that the measures  taken by Greencore indicate it is “getting to grips at speed with the horsemeat issue”.

Greencore had confirmed on Saturday that Asda’s Chosen By You Beef Bolognese Sauce contained 4.8% horse DNA.