“Consumers must be put first if we are to restore trust in the food industry” – Which? response to the Elliott Review on horsemeat

Which? executive director, Richard Lloyd, said:

“It is only right the Government has accepted the Elliott Review findings and recognised that consumers must be put first if we are to restore trust in the food industry following the horsemeat scandal.

“It’s in the interests of responsible food businesses, as well as consumers, to make sure there are effective controls in place and a zero tolerance approach to food crime. We now want the Government to quickly implement all of the recommendations so consumers can be confident in the food they buy.”

 

​Notes to editors

1.    Which? is campaigning to Stop Food Fraud, so consumer can feel confident in the food they buy. More than 33,000 people pledging their support to the campaign.

2.    In April this year we tested 60 lamb takeaways from Birmingham and London and found:

· 40% of lamb takeaways were adulterated with other cheaper meat such as beef and chicken

· Seven of the samples we tested didn’t have any lamb in it at all

We bought 60 lamb takeaways from a selection of Birmingham and London restaurants – 15 lamb curries and 15 minced lamb kebabs in each location. We tested the samples for lamb, beef, chicken, horse, goat, pork and turkey DNA.

3.    Following the horsemeat scandal:

· Half (49%) of consumers said they changed their shopping habits following the horsemeat scandal.

· A third (32%) said they are buying less meat and a quarter (25%) say they are buying less processed meat.

· One in five (19%) said they are buying less ready meals which have meat as an ingredient/choosing vegetarian meals.

Populus, on behalf of Which?, surveyed 2079 UK adults, online between 20th and 21st November 2013. Data were weighted to be representative of the UK population. Populus is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.​

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