New Food Crime Unit to be established as Elliott report recommendations accepted
New Food Crime Unit to be established as Elliott report recommendations accepted
All of the recommendations in the Elliott report on food integrity and assurance of food supply networks have been accepted by the Government including the establishment of a new Food Crime Unit. Environment Secretary, Elizabeth Truss said this would strengthen consumer confidence in Britain’s high quality food.
The new Food Crime Unit is one of a number of improvements the Government says it is taking to ensure consumers have absolute confidence in the produce they purchase.
Environment Secretary, Liz Truss: “The action we’re taking gives more power to consumers – meaning they’ve got better labelling on food, better education about where their food comes from…”
Speaking as the Government published its full response to Professor Elliott’s report, Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss said: “We’re taking action to make sure that families can have absolute confidence in the food that they buy. When a shopper picks something up from a supermarket shelf it should be exactly what it says on the label, and we’ll crack down on food fraudsters trying to con British consumers.
“As well as keeping up confidence here, we need to protect the great reputation of our food abroad. We’ve been opening up even more export markets, which will grow our economy, provide jobs, and support the Government’s long-term economic plan.
“The action we’re taking gives more power to consumers – meaning they’ve got better labelling on food, better education about where their food comes from, and better, locally-sourced food in schools and hospitals.”
Food Fraud a potentially huge problem
Duncan Swift, Partner at Moore Stephens, the Top 10 accountancy firm, who leads their Food Advisory Group commented on today’s publication of the Elliott report:
“Whilst we don’t know the precise extent of food fraud, our experience provides evidence that it is a huge problem in the UK and Professor Elliot’s recommendations are welcome because they will help to drive up standards and cut the risk of it occurring.
“The problem is that the traceability and assurance procedures and anti-fraud resources necessary to reassure the public carry a substantial extra cost and are seen by many in government as additional red tape. The government will not want these costs to hit consumers so they will have to be absorbed by the food supply chain. And, with the supermarkets holding the whip hand in their relationship with suppliers, it’s the farmers and food suppliers and processors who are likely to be footing the bill.
“Food suppliers are already struggling with wafer thin profit margins, so any extra costs could trigger a wave of insolvencies. That would ultimately be bad news for consumers because it would reduce choice on the supermarket shelves and could even lead to higher prices because of less competition.
“Food suppliers and processors should look to get ahead of the game by improving and demonstrating their traceability and validation of all the products and ingredients they use. This will not only bring them into line with any new regulation that the government introduces in the wake of the Elliott report, it might also provide those early adopters with improved sales and profit margins, as consumers become increasingly concerned over the provenance of their foodstuffs and look for demonstrably assured products.”
