A British man working at a foreign-owned gold mine in Kyrgyzstan has been detained and faces up to five years in jail for comparing a local delicacy to a horse penis.

Michael Mcfeat, an employee of Toronto-based Centerra Gold, was detained by Kyrgyz police after posting the comment on his Facebook profile, the remark caused a temporary strike at the mine.

Mcfeat wrote that his Kyrgyz colleagues were queuing for their ‘special delicacy, the horse’s penis’ during holiday celebrations, referring to a traditional horse sausage known as ‘chuchuk.’

Mcfeat later deleted the post (above) and issued an apology on his Facebook page, saying he had not meant to offend anyone.

Mcfeat now faces racial hatred charges, If found guilty Mcfeat could find himself imprisoned for three to five years.