Food Fraud

Horse meat, fake farm brands and re-labelling meat for extra shelf life. Just a few of the news stories that have cast the meat industry into disrepute in the past few years. A recent study tested meat products across Britain and one in five samples contained the DNA of species not shown on the packaging. We can question the method and reliability of this study, but it still casts doubt in our minds as to what’s going on further down the supply chain. Food fraud is squarely in the public eye, yet it’s harder to know whether you’re getting what you’re paying for.

Don’t get us wrong, there are an awful lot of butchers doing an excellent job. They support local agriculture and put quality products on our plates, but how can you tell the good guys from the cowboys? Fancy packaging and spoken assurances can only go so far, so what’s the best way to avoid food fraud?

Enter Happerley

‘Happerley Provenance’ recently formed, aiming to improve transparency throughout the whole of the food industry. From small independent retailers to the largest supermarkets, Happerley encourages food businesses to publish their entire supply chain on their website. This means that at the touch of a button, buyers can look up and be sure of where their food has come from, providing the supplier is Happerley Certified.  While this site can’t monitor 100% of buying and selling activities of any one company, a Happerley certification can go a long way to setting a buyers mind at ease. Take a look at the Happerley website to see if your current butcher is certified at www.happerley.com

Our Commitment

Of course, we wouldn’t be telling you about Happerley if we weren’t fully accredited. It’s a  thorough audit and we are delighted to be a part of the movement. They have set out with the mission to highlight the companies in the industry that do things properly. As part of our ongoing commitment to transparency, we constantly review our supply chain and regularly update a ‘food fraud risk analysis’ as part of our SALSA accreditation. We firmly believe that transparency within the industry is the way forward. If you would like to speak to us about our sourcing policies, please send us an email or pick up the phone.