Investigations look for answers to horsemeat scandal Beef infected with horsemeat has been taken off the supermarket shelves but the crisis remains on the European political agenda. In London on Saturday the British government held an emergency meeting to discuss the scandal determined it says to find answers. It has emerged a French firm, Spanghero supplying horsemeat passed off as beef to British shops was at the centre of a major E.coli scare 20 months ago. The bacteria can cause potentially fatal food poisoning. It is one of two French companies under investigation. Who is at fault? Who defrauded whom? In the light of this investigation and once we have the conclusions then we will have to take sanctions," said Guillaume Garot of the French Ministry of Agriculture. Comigel is the other French company under investigation. It supplied beef infected with horsemeat to several European countries. We don't know where the horses have come from, or if they died naturally or of disease. We don't know anything. They just put it in and expect everybody else to take it and eat it," was one shopper's reaction. Romania has been identified as one source while in Poland a top veterinarian has said investigations in the country have ruled out claims from Ireland that it was the source of horsemeat found in Irish and British burgers. Food giant Findus said they have received a letter from supplier Comigel saying the fraud could date back to August 2012.