One in five lamb take-aways contain other meat: UK study

One in five lamb take-aways contained other types of meat – and some contained no lamb at all according to findings of two investigations, Mail Online reported.

The findings have raised concerns about the content of many curries and kababs.

Many dishes also contained undeclared allergens and some had high levels of artificial colourings known to have an adverse effect on health.

The Food Standards Agency which conducted an investigation found that over 21 per cent of lamb dishes sold by takeaways contained other meat, and 5 per cent were mostly or entirely beef.

Seven food outlets faced prosecution while others had received written warnings as a result of the latest investigation.

The investigation by the Food Standards Agency was conducted after preliminary tests at the end of 2013 found 30 per cent of lamb dishes contained other meats or no lamb.

Also Which? Carried out its own tests and discovered 40 per cent of the meals it sampled were affected.

Richard Lloyd, executive director of Which?, said last night that it was shocking to find that one in five samples were still contaminated with other meats. He added Which? wanted the  government, local authorities and FSA to take tougher action to crack down on food fraud offenders.'

The Which? investigation tested 60 lamb takeaways from a selection of Birmingham and London restaurants which revealed that 40 per cent of the meals were contaminated with other meats, The Guardian reported. According to the consumer magazine the latest FSA findings, which suggest little progress had been made, were shocking.

Lloyd said the local authorities and the FSA needed to take tougher action to crack down on food fraud offenders and ensure the recommendations from the Elliott review were implemented.

The consumer groups' Stop Food Fraud campaign had received the support of nearly 35,000 members of the public.

The study added to increasing concern over what appeared to be the widespread mislabelling of meat, following the horsemeat scandal in 2013 (See: Irish company kept discovery of horse meat in beef secret) and even instances of donkey meat (Now donkey meat found at firms in horse meat probe). 

According to John Barnes, the FSA's head of local delivery, consumers needed to know that the food they bought was what it said on the menu or the label. He added, the FSA was working with local authorities to identify potential problems and investigate.