An investigation of food fraud is underway after a UK supermarket was found to have meat products on its shelves labelled as British, when in fact, they were sourced elsewhere.
The Food Standards Agency’s (FSA’s) National Food Crime Unit (NFCU) in the UK has confirmed to Agriland that an investigation is underway.
Deputy head of the NFCU, Andrew Quinn said: “The FSA’s National Food Crime Unit is investigating how one UK retailer was supplied with pre-packed sliced meat and deli products labelled as British when they were in fact sourced from South America and Europe.”
Quinn said the retailer in question was notified on the same day that the NFCU took action against the food business suspected of the fraud.
The retailer immediately removed all affected products from their shelves.
“The retailer continues to work closely and cooperatively with the NFCU investigation to progress the case against the supplier. This is not a food safety issue but a matter of food fraud,” Quinn added.
“Any fraud investigations of this nature take time to go through evidence and bring to any outcome, including any potential prosecution.
“We take food fraud very seriously and are acting urgently to protect the consumer,” he added.
The NFCU said it cannot provide any more specific details as it could jeopardise the investigation and any future proceedings.
However, it confirmed that the investigation concerns pre-packed sliced meat and deli products, not minced beef, burgers or steak.
UK NFCU
The National Food Crime Unit is a dedicated law enforcement function of the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
The unit provides leadership on food crime across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The unit works closely with the Scottish Food Crime and Incidents Unit within Food Standards Scotland.
The NFCU was established in 2015 following a review of the 2013 horse meat incident. The unit is tasked with protecting consumers and the food industry from food crime within food supply chains.
It defines food crime as serious fraud and related criminality in food supply chains. This definition also includes activity impacting on drink and animal feed.
The NFCU response is determined by assessing the gravity of the fraud. This will include considerations of the degree of planning and coordination in committing it, the impact of the fraud across geographical regions and boundaries, and the financial loss and other harm to the public and industry.
According to the NFCU, examples of food crime include the use of stolen food in the supply chain, unlawful slaughter, diversion of unsafe food, adulteration, substitution or misrepresentation of food, and document fraud.