Our Trading Standards service is urging shoppers to check meat labels carefully this festive season after a major investigation revealed misleading claims among some local butchers and farm shops.
Officers from Heart of the South West Trading standards Service visited 15 shops – nine in Devon, five in Somerset and one in Torbay – and only two were compliant.
Checks on websites, social media, and in-store displays uncovered inaccurate or ambiguous descriptions, with some imported products wrongly marketed as ‘local’ or ‘free-range.’
Under UK law, fresh, chilled and frozen meat – including beef, pork, lamb, goat and poultry – must display clear information such as the name of the food, type of meat, and country of origin or rearing and slaughter.
Provenance claims like ‘Westcountry’ or ‘outdoor-reared’ must be backed up by written confirmation from suppliers. Misleading or unclear labelling is a criminal offence.
Trading standards advises shoppers to look for accurate labels and question traders about vague claims such as ‘locally sourced,’ which may mean meat was bought from a local wholesaler but imported from abroad.
Fakir Mohammed Osman, head of the Heart of the South West Trading standards, said:
“We want consumers to feel confident that they are supporting genuine local businesses and farmers.
“Unfortunately, we’ve seen evidence of imported meat being sold as ‘local’ and ‘free-range,’ which is illegal. Our officers will continue inspections and take proportionate action where necessary.”
Councillor Simon Clist, our cabinet member responsible for trading standards said:
“Consumers deserve honesty about the food they buy, especially at Christmas when many are willing to pay more for premium local produce.
“This project highlights the importance of transparency and protecting the integrity of our local food chain.
“We would advise purchasing from a reputable trader, and I want to thank our trading standards officers for the hard work they put in to protect consumers.”
All businesses were given verbal and advice and will be re-visited to ensure compliance.
If businesses don’t comply trading standards can take further action. That could mean issuing a food improvement notice, taking formal samples for testing by the Public Analyst, or sharing information with partners like the National Food Crime Unit.
Due to such high non-compliance this work will continue in 2026.
For more information on meat labelling rules, visit www.devonsomersettradingstandards.gov.uk or contact Trading Standards on 01392 381381 (Devon), 0300 123 2224 (Somerset), or 01803 208025 (Torbay).