Administrators overseeing the closure of a Derbyshire food company say they will co-operate with authorities

Administrators overseeing the closure of a firm suspected to be at the centre of a national food fraud investigation have said they will co-operate with authorities.

Steven Ross and Allan Kelly, of business advisory firm FRP, were appointed as joint administrators to Loscoe Chilled Foods Limited, based in Loscoe, Derbyshire, on April 3.

The appointment, confirmed on Wednesday, came after the business was subject to an unannounced visit by Derbyshire Police and the National Food Crime Unit (NFCU) as part of an investigation into alleged food fraud on March 22.

Three people were arrested during the operation, which came after meat was found to have been incorrectly labelled as British and supplied to a supermarket.

They have since been released under investigation, the NFCU said.

Mr Ross, joint administrator for FRP, said: "Our focus is on formally winding down the operations of Loscoe Chilled Foods Limited and preparing for an asset sale.

"We are engaged with the National Food Crime Unit and will provide any assistance to support their investigations.

"In the meantime, we have a team working with impacted staff to assist with making claims through the Redundancy Payments Service."

The investigation was first launched into the suspected food fraud in September 2021, prior to the site visit in March.

Booths, which has 27 stores across the north-west of England, confirmed it was the supermarket chain linked to the investigation, with a "limited number" of cooked meat lines removed from sale in 2021.

Fresh meat was unaffected.

A spokesperson said: "Following some recent speculation, Booths Supermarkets can confirm that they have been working closely and co-operatively with the National Food Crime Unit since being made aware of potential food fraud issues in 2021.

"Booths are categorically not under investigation by the NFCU.

"Booths' support for the investigation relates to a limited selection of cooked meat products and Booths have no knowledge of any other aspects of the investigation.

"At the point of being made aware of the potential issues in 2021, Booths acted instantly, removing all relevant products from sale and ceased trading with the supplier with immediate effect.

"Booths would like to confirm that fresh meat, poultry and game products are entirely unaffected by this investigation and that with the exception of the limited selection of cooked meat products impacted in 2021, Booths is absolutely confident in its British-only meat commitment.

"It is also important to note that whilst the NFCU investigation relates to a potential serious food fraud incident, this is not a food safety issue.

"Issues of provenance, traceability, honesty and authenticity are of the highest importance to Booths and the business has been fully co-operating with and supporting the work of the NFCU for the past 18 months."

The NFCU had previously said the products concerned were pre-packed meat and deli products which had actually come from South America and Europe before being supplied to a supermarket and labelled as British.

A spokesperson for FRP confirmed that Loscoe Chilled Foods had its Brand Reputation through Compliance of Global Standards (BRCGS) licence suspended due to the investigation by the NFCU.

This led to the cancellation of customer contracts and orders, which left the business insolvent.

Some 120 staff were laid off prior to the appointment of administrators, with staff formally made redundant after administrators were appointed, although a "small number" were retained to assist the administration process.

Emily Miles, chief executive of the Food Standards Agency, said: "We are continuing our criminal investigation into how a meat supplier allegedly provided products labelled as British when they were in fact sourced from other countries.

"This is a live investigation which means we are looking into all new lines of inquiry with the relevant local authorities, including investigating potential food hygiene breaches.

"This is alongside the work we are doing to investigate food fraud.

"Based on the investigation to date, there is no indication that food is unsafe or there is an increased risk to consumers.

"Criminal investigations take time and need to be done with due process and fairness. The FSA will work tirelessly on behalf of consumers to ensure that this criminal investigation is done to the highest possible standards.

"I do want to emphasise at a time when cost pressures and other challenges mean the risks of food fraud might be increasing, it is vital everyone involved in the food chain works to ensure that food is safe and what it says it is."

Loscoe Chilled Foods has been approached for comment.

Hear all the latest news from across the East Midlands on the hour, every hour, on 106FM, DAB, at playgemradio.com, and on the Gem app.