Ikea in Croydon has been selling meatballs from a batch found to be contaminated with horsemeat.

The Czech State Veterinary Administration found the traces of horse during tests on the company’s beef and pork meatballs.

Meatballs from the same contaminated batch were being sold at the store in Valley Park Croydon.

Ikea said they had no specific figures yet for how long they were being sold for and how big the batch of defective meatballs were.

They were on sale in the shop and not being sold in the store’s restaurant.

An Ikea spokesman said they have issued a halt to the sale of the affected batch in all affected countries which include the UK.

Ikea said in house testing of 12 samples of meatball batches two weeks ago showed no traces.

The spokesman said: “Ikea takes the test result from the Czech Republic authorities showing indications of traces of horse meat seriously.

“Ikea is committed to serving and selling high quailty food that is safe, healthy and produced with care for the environment and the people who produce it.

“We do not tolerate any other ingredients than the ones stipulated in our recipes or specifications, secured through set standards, certifications and product analysis by accredited laboratories.

“We work closely with all suppliers of raw material, processed food and services to ensure the IKEA Way (IWAY) on purchasing is followed.”

Ikea will now carry out more tests to double check that the Czech authorities were right with their findings.

The spokesman said meatballs will continue to be sold at Purley Way as only one batch has been found to be contaminated.