Urgent calls are being made for mandatory digital horse IDs, as leading figures from the equine and food sectors warn of major failures in equine tracking and euthanasia rules.
Concerns are mounting that horses treated with lethal veterinary drugs could inadvertently or illegally enter the human food chain, posing a significant public health risk.
Despite the fallout from the 2013 horsemeat scandal, the UK continues to depend on an outdated paper-based passport system, managed by more than 70 third-party organisations.
Experts warn that many of these are unable to accurately update records relating to ownership, transfer, or death.
Dr Jason Aldiss, executive director of AIMS, formally known as the Association of Independent Meat Suppliers, warned the UK was "sitting on a ticking time bomb.”
“There is absolutely nothing stopping a horse euthanised with barbiturates—rendering its meat a toxic hazard—from being passed off as a clean carcase for human consumption."
The government’s Central Equine Database (CED), established to provide a reliable national record, remains underused and ineffective due to the lack of mandatory, real-time data updates by horse owners.
Without centralised enforcement, experts caution that horse meat substitution remains a very real threat—especially amid tightening conditions in the red meat market.
Public concern has also surged following recent footage of visibly compromised horses being exported live via Dover under unclear circumstances.
Campaigners say such incidents go against public sentiment, which overwhelmingly opposes the inclusion of horses in the human food chain and the inhumane conditions often linked to their export.
Veterinary professionals, industry bodies, and equine welfare organisations are urging the government to take immediate action over the issue.
They are calling for legislation to be introduced that would make it mandatory for horse owners to update the Central Equine Database (CED) directly and in real time.
They also urging for integrating equines into the UK Livestock Information Service to access part of the £500m set aside for digital food traceability.
“The technology exists, the funding exists, the legislative draft already exists,” noted Dr Aldiss.
"What’s missing is the political will. We must act now to prevent another scandal and to uphold consumer trust, animal welfare, and public health.”
