Scottish Food Watchdogs Discover Mislabeled Products, Including Counterfeit Vodka

Food safety watchdogs in Scotland have identified a range of products, including burgers, curries, and fish suppers, that contained different meat and ingredients than advertised. Tests conducted between April 2024 and March 2026 uncovered numerous dishes and drinks that did not match their labels, according to details obtained from local councils and Food Standards Scotland (FSS).

Among the identified issues were sausages with significantly higher fat content than stated, battered haddock that was found to be whiting, and takeaways that deviated from menu descriptions. For example, some dishes advertised as lamb curries and kebabs were found to be made with beef, pork, or chicken.

While most discrepancies did not involve deliberate fraud, a batch of products sold as ‘Glen’s Vodka’ were identified as counterfeit and contained ‘potentially lethal isopropyl alcohol.’ These findings led to three premises being reported to prosecutors in Scotland.

Midlothian Council documented a case where a company was found to have ‘adulterated’ gin sold to consumers. South Lanarkshire Council reported several incidents, including products falsely advertised as being made with Stornoway black pudding or Scotch beef. Some outlets also sold alcohol with lower or higher alcohol percentages than declared.

Fat content was another concern. South Ayrshire officers found a steak slice marketed as ‘reduced fat’ contained nearly 22g of fat per 100g, substantially exceeding the 4 percent stated on its label.

Further investigations in the north of Scotland revealed a ‘pork burger’ with insufficient meat content, reportedly bulked out with cranberries and red onion chutney. In Angus, a product sold as ‘fresh haddock’ was found to be made from frozen fish, and ‘homemade ice cream’ was identified as a shop-bought item. Whisky was also found to be sold with lower alcohol by volume than claimed.

A spokesperson for FSS stated that consumers have a right to expect accurate descriptions and labeling. They added that while the majority of food businesses comply with standards, instances of non-compliance are taken seriously by enforcement authorities and represent a small fraction of products identified through sampling activities.