- Food fraud costs billions yearly.
- UK’s FSA establishes fraud hotline.
- Industry collaboration to combat fraud.
The UK’s food watchdog estimates that food fraud costs the government, businesses, and consumers £1.96 billion yearly.
The food safety watchdog of the United Kingdom has established a new free phone line to assist individuals in reporting suspected food fraud.
Regulatory agencies use the umbrella term “food fraud” to refer to any form of food-related criminal activity.
According to the Food Standards Agency (FSA), this frequently entails the sale of food or beverages that do not live up to their claims, or products containing less expensive constituents than those specified on the label.
Food fraud may cost consumers, businesses, and the government between £410 million and £1.96 billion annually, according to the watchdog.
Its new toll-free number allows food sector personnel to “confidentially” report food offences.
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The UK meat supplier Loscoe Chilled Foods came under criminal investigation for mislabeling at the end of March.
Booths, a supermarket chain, was the recipient of pre-packaged sliced meats and deli products from Loscoe that were allegedly sourced from South America and Europe but designated as British. As a result, three arrests were made.
Emily Miles, the chief executive officer of the FSA, stated, “The United Kingdom has some of the safest and most authentic cuisine in the world, but criminal activity will always pose a threat to the food system.
“We wish to support food businesses, which are our primary and most vital line of defense against threats.” For this reason, we formed a working committee to examine ways to improve our food trafficking strategy.
Collaboratively, we are facilitating the exchange of intelligence and information by enabling food system professionals to confide in us anonymously and securely regarding their concerns.
“Our research suggests that for businesses and consumers feeling the financial strain, the cost of food crime still matters.”
Helen Sisson, director and co-chair of the Food Industry Intelligence Network, further stated, “We are delighted to collaborate with the FSA and our food industry partners in order to enhance our measures for preventing food-related criminal activities within our supply chains.
Cooperation and communication between every part of the food system is vital to protect the public and the global reputation of UK food,” Ms. Sisson stated.
‘Food Crime Confidential’ can be contacted at food.gov.uk or by dialling 0800 028 1180 (0207 276 8787 for non-UK mobiles and calls) to report any suspicions of food fraud.
