UK supermarkets may have been sold products mislabelled as British, according to a statement made by the Food Standards Agency.
The FSA announced yesterday that it was continuing a criminal investigation into how a meat supplier allegedly provided products labelled as British when they were sourced from other countries. The statement follows an in-depth investigation carried out by Farmers Weekly which alleged an unnamed meat processor of carrying out the crime as well as selling rotten meat to UK supermarkets.
Emily Miles, chief executive of the Food Standards Agency, said in a statement: “This is a live investigation which means we are looking into all new lines of inquiry with the relevant local authorities, including investigating potential food hygiene breaches. This is alongside the work we are doing to investigate food fraud.”
According to an in-depth investigation carried out by Farmers Weekly, the processor, which cannot be named for legal reasons, has also been accused by former employees of regularly “washing” hams that are visibly off, or mixing rotting pork with fresh product for further processing.
Miles added that cost pressures, among other challenges, could mean that risks of food fraud is increasing: “It is vital everyone involved in the food chain works to ensure that food is safe and what it says it is”.
The investigation both the FSA and National Food Crime Unit (NFCU) have been aware of the activities taking place at the processor since 2020 with one source claiming to have sent photographic evidence and information to the FSA several years before then.
It is thought that the meat processed by the company ended up in products such as ready meals, quiches and produce sold in Tesco, Asda, Co-op, Morrisons and Marks & Spencer.
Food manufacturer and distributor Oscar Mayer, which supplies Sainsbury’s, Aldi, Ikea, Subway and airline food producer Dnata, was another customer, as were Princes and BidFood.
Schools, hospitals, care homes and prisons were also allegedly supplied with the produce, with one source interviewed by Farmers Weekly alleging the most rotten meat would end up there.
“I used to tell them about it,” they said. “I used to [say] ‘you can’t do this’. [The reply was] ‘Do you want the ***ing job? Get back in there’.”
Speaking on the investigation in the Commons, Environment Minister, Mark Spencer, said: “It’s a very important issue. We’ve not made a statement today because there is an ongoing criminal investigation. I don’t want to jeopardise that criminal investigation because these are very serious allegations.”
He continued: “The Food and Standards Agency has a responsibility in this area. I have met last week with the chair of the Food and Standards Agency, I continue to meet with the meat industry and have met them this month and will continue to do so on a regular basis. “We will keep a close eye on the investigation and we will be back with the Food and Standards Agency to deliver criminal prosecution”.
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024
