Referring to the developing horsemeat scandal, Malcolm Walker told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show on television yesterday: “Supermarkets shouldn’t be blamed. British supermarkets have got a fantastic reputation for food safety.
“If we’re going to blame somebody, let’s start with local authorities because there’s a whole side of this industry which is invisible, that’s the catering industry.
“Schools, hospitals, it’s a massive business for cheap food and local authorities award contracts based purely on one thing: price.
"Dodgy cutting houses and backstreet manufacturers have been supplying products to the catering industry and a lot of that is bought by local authorities for schools and hospitals - that's where the problem really lies," he added.
Responding later to the criticisms, Sir Merrick Cockell, chairman of Local Government Association, said the claims were "ridiculous".