The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has launched a new consultation on proposed additional investigatory powers, seeking opinion from the public, public health professionals and food sector partners.

In order to investigate food crime effectively, the FSA are seeking further legal powers for the National Food Crime Unit (NFCU), which in turn will reduce the dependency of support on partners such as local authorities and the police.

The NFCU is the FSA’s law enforcement unit, detecting, investigating and disrupting serious fraud and related criminality within food supply chains across the UK.

The Association said that the implementation of these further legal powers would ensure that any police presence necessary would be much smaller. According to the FSA, this is a much more sustainable long-term solution, granting NFCU more strength to tackle food fraud and protect the consumer.

Enhancing powers

Acting Head of the NFCU, Andrew Quinn, said: “We’ve launched this consultation as we want to protect consumers and businesses from food fraud more effectively. This additional power of search and entry would be a vital tool to make sure that investigations can be progressed more directly, while also freeing up local police services so their vital resources can be diverted to other priorities.

“At the same time any use of these powers of entry and search will be restrained, focusing on effective regulation to prevent and detect food crime, and subject to robust controls and external scrutiny. We remain committed to using any enhanced powers in a proportionate way that keeps the public safe, with strengthened safeguards and oversight arrangements to guard against their abuse. We encourage everyone who wants to have their say to respond so that they can inform our work in the future.”

The consultation is available on the FSA website.