Food Crime Unit to be set up in response to horsemeat scandal

A Food Crime Unit (FCU) is to be established in the UK to tackle food fraud and protect consumers, the Government announced today.

The FCU was one of several recommendations published in a report by food security expert Professor Chris Elliott. It was commissioned following last year's horsemeat scandal, in which horse DNA was discovered in frozen hamburgers sold by supermarkets including Tesco, Asda and Iceland, leading to public outcry.

"I believe the creation of the national food crime prevention framework will ensure measures are put in place to further help protect consumers from any food fraud incidents in the future," he told the BBC.

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Other recommendations included:

• Making the safety of consumers a priority for the food industry, government and enforcement agencies
• Punitive measures to discourage food fraud
• Government and the food industry sharing information and increase transparency
• Effective mechanisms to be put in place so that when a serious incident occurs, such as the horsemeat scandal, it can be contained
• The introduction of a whistleblowing system to more easily alert authorities

Police have warned that international gangs are profiting from food fraud and that it is becoming a major problem that can have lethal consequences.

"This has changed the scope of investigations," said Michael Ellis, assistant director of Interpol. "Criminals have realised that they can make the same amount of money by dealing with counterfeit food. Invariably the sentences are much lighter."

Ministers have confirmed that the Government will accept all of the recommendations made by Prof Elliott.

Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss said that the Government had already begun implementing some Prof Elliot's recommendations. These included greater transparency and the creation of shorter supply chains.