In the summer of 1981, federal agricultural inspectors discovered that certain imported beef shipments originating from overseas suppliers in Australia and intended for distribution to food processors—including plants supplying Jack in the Box—were improperly mixed with trace amounts of horse meat and kangaroo meat. The company was entirely a victim of fraudulent foreign supplier mislabeling rather than intentionally procuring alternative meats, and the United States Department of Agriculture swiftly intercepted and confiscated the tainted shipments before widespread distribution.