Introduction of Food Fraud Co-ordination Unit for Wales

Monday 31 January 2005

As a result of concern over the number of illegal slaughter and unfit food issues that have been investigated during the past three years, a specialist Food Fraud Co-ordination Unit has now been established in Wales.

Food Safety Officers from local authorities in West Wales have worked in partnership with the Food Standards Agency Wales to investigate the illegal slaughter of livestock and the highly lucrative trade of supplying unfit meat for human consumption. The slaughtering of animals for this trade often takes place at unlicensed premises such as farms and in insanitary and unhygienic conditions.

Funding has been secured from the National Assembly of Wales to create the co-ordination unit to help tackle this and other food frauds. The unit is hosted by Ceredigion County Council, and it is a resource available to assist and co-ordinate the enforcement endeavours of the 22 local authorities in Wales each of which has responsibility for food safety, food standards and feedingstuffs. The aim is to to ensure that deliberate contraventions of food safety control measures are dealt with in a firm and consistent manner, and that the risks to public health and safety are minimised.

Joy Whinney, Director of Food Standards Agency Wales, said that while responsibility for the investigation of breaches of food safety law will remain with the local authority in whose area the offences are committed, experience has demonstrated that the individuals involved in this type of illegal activity do not observe county, nor indeed country, boundaries.

She explained that the Food Fraud Co-ordination Unit will assist in resolving illicit cross border activities, helping to mesh the enforcement arrangements in Wales and minimising the opportunities for deliberate, sophisticated or organised breaches of the animal health and food safety control measures. Experience gained by the unit can be shared with colleagues from local authorities across the UK, to assist in the development of good practice to help combat any illicit trade nationally or regionally.