Inflation increases “food fraud” risk, says UK’s FSA amid rotten meat investigation

31 Mar 2023 --- The UK Food Standard Agency (FSA) has launched a criminal investigation after an undisclosed meat producer provided products labeled as British that were sourced from other countries. Moreover, some of these products might have been rotten.

Therésè Coffey, secretary of state for the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), said yesterday that she would look into bringing the FSA under the Defra umbrella. 

Meanwhile, FSA chief executive, Emily Miles, says the agency “will work tirelessly on behalf of consumers to ensure that this criminal investigation is done to the highest possible standards.” 

“At a time when cost pressures and other challenges mean the risks of food fraud might be increasing, it is vital everyone involved in the food chain works to ensure that food is safe and what it says it is,” highlights Miles.

Double checked meats
Over the last year, the FSA has advised retailers to check their cooked meat supply chain and apply extra due diligence. 

Nonetheless, “based on the investigation to date, there is no indication that food is unsafe or there is an increased risk to consumers,” according to Miles.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) says none of its members has found any evidence of meat products from the suspect factory on their shelves or in their supply chain.

Where did the bad meat go?
According to Farmers Weekly, the media outlet which unveiled the meat processor malpractices, the undisclosed company’s meat ended up in products such as ready meals, quiches, sandwiches and other products sold in Tesco, Asda, Co-op, Morrisons and Marks & Spencer.

According to the FSA "there is no indication that food is unsafe or there is an increased risk to consumers.” “The role of the FSA is to work with retailers to prevent fraud. While we cannot comment on an ongoing investigation, retailers will support the FSA with its investigation into the individual supplier in question,” says a BRC spokesperson.

“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,” says Miles. 

According to Farmers Weekly, schools, hospitals, care homes and prisons were also indirectly supplied with rotten meat.

UK food inflation and shortages
A recent spike in global sugar prices coupled with the shortages of fruits and vegetables has driven the UK to historical inflation rates. Food inflation accelerated to 15% and 17% for the fresh food category, the highest data points ever recorded by the BRC.

With key ingredients less readily available and the industry under pressure to limit retail price increases, Noeeleen Donegan, global VP of Food Safety at Kerry told FoodIngredientsFirst that the global supply chain is now – more than ever – susceptible to food fraud and adulteration. 

This week, according to European Commission investigations, 46% of collected samples of honey imports are suspected of being adulterated with syrups. This situation has been denounced by Copa and Cogeca, which insist it is high time for the EU to act on honey fraud. 

By Marc Cervera