Scotland pledges new laws after horsemeat scandal

The new laws will be included in the government’s Food Standards Scotland Bill, which will create the new food body for Scotland. Officers will receive new enforcement powers to seize food that fails to meet food standards or labelling rules.

Also it will also be compulsory to report non-compliance with food standards regulations, which cover food fraud.

Michael Matheson, public health minister, said: “We need to be able to trust the food we buy. We must know what is in our food and it must be safe to eat.​

‘Severely dented consumer confidence’​

“The horsemeat scandal severely dented consumer confidence here in Scotland and across Europe. That is why the Scottish government and our partners, including the Food Standards Agency ​[FSA], are taking tough action to protect consumers and ensure food quality and safety.”​

The decision follows two expert group reports commissioned by the Scottish government, following the horsemeat fraud.

The Expert Advisory Group, led by former chief vet Professor Jim Scudamore, was asked to look at food and feed safety and standards in Scotland. Ray Jones’ Expert Advisory Group was asked to consider traceability and labelling in the red meat sector.

Richard Lochhead, cabinet secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment, said: “Nevertheless, this government is determined to take action to further strengthen our defences and to build on the high levels of confidence in Scottish red meat.​”

Scottish red meat​

The EU should take food fraud seriously to ensure consumer confidence is not undermined by deliberate fraud and food mislabelling, he said.

The Scottish government said it was giving more money to FSA Scotland funding to extend meat testing, preparing additional guidance on public sector food procurement in Scotland, asking retailers for more clarity in how they label red meat products as Scottish.

Previously the government had pledged £1M in extra support for Quality Meat Scotland to strengthen consumer awareness of the provenance that underpins the Scotch label and £1M to develop a multi-species livestock database to improve traceability.

Meanwhile, watch our exclusive video with Dominic Watkins, head of the food group at law firm DWF, who said Britain needed more enforcers to tackle food fraud​ not more laws.