Fake labels: Do you know what you are drinking?

Do wine drinkers know what they are consuming? 

Some British wine consumers may have been fooled. 

 
Around 90 pallets of counterfeit wine and Prosecco worth £500,000 were discovered in warehouses across Essex in south-east England in a police operation earlier this month. 

A man was arrested for conspiracy to defraud following the police seizure of 67,000 bottles of counterfeit wine and Prosecco across warehouses in Essex and North London. 

Several police forces and trading authorities were involved in the attempt to stop the fake bottles from reaching consumers, trade news hub drinks business reported.. 

“Seizing over 67,000 bottles of counterfeit product and making an arrest sends a strong message to those who seek to profit from deceiving consumers - we will take action,” said Andrew Quinn, head of the National Food Crime Unit, in an official statement.

“Food [drink] fraud is not a victimless crime. It undermines legitimate businesses and erodes consumer trust. In this case, the concern is one of authenticity and quality - consumers deserve to know that what they are buying is exactly what it claims to be.”

Quinn further revealed on LinkedIn that the investigation had required “close collaboration with our Italian counterparts”. 

A spokesperson for the UK’s Food Standards Agency told db that the equivalent Italian agency were helping to “establish the traceability of the wine seized”.