Sainsbury’s and Morrisons remove Mexican foods as nuts are found in some spice packs

Ground nut shells are being used in place of more expensive spices

Enchilda Dinner Kits have been recalled

Two major supermarkets have recalled a series of Mexican meal kits from their shelves over fears they could contain undeclared almonds – potentially fatal to anyone with a nut allergy.

Sainsbury’s and Morrisons recalled their Enchilada Dinner Kits as a precautionary measure after similar products supplied by the same spice company were found to contain almond protein in place of paprika.

It follows the recall of 10 products in the UK and a further three dozen in Scandinavia over undeclared almonds.

Retailers have been scrutinising their supply chains for the presence of almonds and peanuts and sources told The Independent there were signs that some are also starting to examine sage alongside paprika and cumin for possible signs that cheaper ingredients are being used to “bulk it up”.

Morrisons and Sainsbury’s said they were making the latest recalls as a precaution because the mixes were very similar to others that have been recalled in the past few days following the discovery of undeclared almonds.

Sainsbury's and Morrisons have removed products from shelves similar to those that were found to contain nuts in place of spices (Getty) (Getty Images)

They also have the same supplier – Santa Maria, a Swedish company that has supplied most of the spice mixes in which almonds have been detected in Europe.

More than three dozen of its products have been recalled in the UK, Norway, Denmark and Sweden. Santa Maria recalled a further product in the UK yesterday – its Discovery Chilli Con Carne Seasoning pack – taking its total in Britain to 12.

The Aldi budget supermarket, which recalled its sole Santa Maria product over the weekend, said yesterday that it had banned its products from its shelves “until we are confident that the issue has been addressed”. The retailer is the first to ban Santa Maria from its stores.

Santa Maria, which has a UK base in Milton Keynes, said yesterday it was working hard to get to the source of the contamination.

Food watchdogs in Scandinavia have recalled about three dozen products containing almonds, pictured, in place of paprika (M.Verkerk/J.J.G.Claessens/Creative Commons)

“Santa Maria takes this incident seriously. After this incident we have initiated an investigation of the supply chain in order to find out how this could happen and to prevent this from happening again,” a spokesman for the company said.

It has yet to be determined if any of the cases of the substitution unearthed in Europe are accidental or whether they are intentional and designed to save money by switching relatively expensive cumin or paprika for much cheaper almond-shell powder.

However, experts are concerned that ground nut shells are being used in place of spices on a large scale in a potential crisis they fear could be more dangerous than the horsemeat scandal due to the threat to allergy sufferers.

Paprika – a ground powder made from sweet and hot dried peppers – and cumin are two of the most popular ingredients in European cooking. Although it has yet to be established whether their replacement by almonds – and by peanuts in cases uncovered in the US and Canada – is fraudulent, experts fear that their shells are being ground up and used in the food chain.

The Food Standards Agency said last night “investigations are ongoing”.