'Unfit' meat seized from stores

Trading standards officials removed the meat from the shops

Inspectors say they have seized potentially unfit meat from food shops in Stoke-on-Trent.

Environmental health officers found meat during their inspections which did not have proper documentation and they were unable to trace its supply chain.

Fenton Magistrates Court granted condemnation orders on three separate batches of unfit food which included ox lung and heart, the city council said.

The shop owners bought the meat in good faith from their suppliers, it added.

The meat was removed from the shops and is to be incinerated.

Regular checks

The environmental health officers were working with colleagues in London.

They are trying to unravel the supply chain, which is thought to be linked to London, and to find those who distributed the meat, the council said.

Councillor Paul Shotton, portfolio holder for public safety, said: "My officers make regular checks to food premises to make sure that food is safe to buy.

"Traders must be able to show that they have an effective system in place to prove that their food meets strict EU and UK rules.

"Food without the proper paperwork offers no guarantee about quality or fitness."

A nationwide search for similar products is under way, the council said.