A national investigation has been launched into supermarkets that have been selling out of date meat.
The National Crime Unit, part of the Food Standards Agency, has launched its investigation into at UK meat processor that has been accused of claiming unsafe foreign meat is British.
The company, which has not been named, supplies meat to a number of leading supermarkets across the country, as well as schools and hospitals.
The meat was being used in products such as ready meals and sandwiches sold in Tesco, Asda, Co-op, Morrisons and Marks & Spencer.
A national investigation has been launched into supermarkets that have been selling out of date meat
PA
The investigation is reviewing around 1.3 million documents with products being sold as “best British beef”.
Staff at the company made the shocking revelations which lead to the investigation.
Former staff have also claimed the company regularly washed hams that were off, as well as mixing rotting pork with fresh pork.
The revelation was released by Farmers Weekly, who also found that meat was on occasion thawed out on the factory floor.
A source alleged that most of the rotten meat was sent to care homes, hospitals and schools.
PA
The company is also accused of falsifying sampling paperwork which tests for food bugs such as E coli and listeria.
A source alleged that most of the rotten meat was sent to care homes, hospitals and schools.
Another said: “It used to get me to a point where I’d be thinking ‘we’re going to kill someone, we’re going to kill someone, we’re going to kill someone’.”
Other sources told Farmers Weekly they would sit in their car crying because they didn’t want to go in.
The meat was being used in products such as ready meals and sandwiches sold in Tesco, Asda, Co-op, Morrisons and Marks & Spencer.
PA
There has been no suggestion customers of the company were aware of the alleged criminal practices.
Head of the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) National Food Crime Unit, Darren Davies, said: “The FSA’s National Food Crime Unit is carrying out a criminal investigation into how a supplier was allegedly providing products labelled as British when they were in fact sourced from elsewhere.
“This is a complex and live investigation and we are looking into all new lines of enquiry with our partner organisations, including any potential food hygiene breaches at the premises. If any evidence of a food safety risk is found, then necessary action will be taken.
“The FSA advised retailers last year to check their cooked meat supply chain and to apply extra due diligence in their checks. We don’t give out these alerts without a reason.
“We will not name the supplier while we painstakingly gather evidence to support our investigation so as not to prejudice any possible future action by the courts.
“As a national regulator, we are the last line of defence. At a time when cost pressures and other challenges mean the risks of food fraud might be increasing, it is vital that everyone involved in the food system remains extra vigilant to ensure that food is safe and what it says it is.”
