0:00:02 > 0:00:05There's a lot we don't know about the food on our plates
0:00:05 > 0:00:08and the shops and the labels don't always tell you the whole story.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12I think they encourage you to buy more than you need
0:00:12 > 0:00:14and that causes a lot of waste.
0:00:14 > 0:00:18Whether you're staying in or going out, you've told us you can feel
0:00:18 > 0:00:21ripped off by the promises made about what you eat
0:00:21 > 0:00:23and what you pay for it.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25How do you know that it's half price?
0:00:25 > 0:00:27So what they've done,
0:00:27 > 0:00:29they've bumped the price up and then knocked it down.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33From claims that don't stack up
0:00:33 > 0:00:35to the secrets behind the packaging,
0:00:35 > 0:00:37we'll uncover the truth about Britain's food,
0:00:37 > 0:00:40so you can be sure that you ARE getting what you expect -
0:00:40 > 0:00:42at the right price.
0:00:42 > 0:00:44Your food. Your money.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46This is Rip-Off Britain.
0:00:50 > 0:00:54Hello and welcome to a special series of Rip-Off Britain,
0:00:54 > 0:00:57investigating the truth about something that's a huge part
0:00:57 > 0:01:01of every household's spending, and that's food.
0:01:01 > 0:01:02But when it comes to what we eat,
0:01:02 > 0:01:05it's not just what we pay for it that we mind about.
0:01:05 > 0:01:09Just as important is what's in it and where it's come from.
0:01:09 > 0:01:12But when you think about it, the journey of our raw ingredients
0:01:12 > 0:01:15before they ever arrive on our plates can be much more complicated
0:01:15 > 0:01:17than you'd ever imagine, whether that's because
0:01:17 > 0:01:21they've come from thousands of miles away or, literally, just up the road.
0:01:21 > 0:01:23But you may not always get all the information
0:01:23 > 0:01:26you need to know from whoever's selling them,
0:01:26 > 0:01:29or indeed from what it says on the label or the packet.
0:01:29 > 0:01:32But, you know, however far our food has travelled, any gaps
0:01:32 > 0:01:36in the detail of where it's come from can lead to serious problems.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39So at the root of all of the stories that we're going to be investigating
0:01:39 > 0:01:43today is how much we know about where our food started out
0:01:43 > 0:01:46and what that means for its price, and even for its safety.
0:01:46 > 0:01:51And we'll also be discovering why it is that near identical words
0:01:51 > 0:01:53on the packaging can mean very different things
0:01:53 > 0:01:55when it comes to what's actually inside.
0:01:57 > 0:02:01Coming up - how an illegal trade in food foraged from the forest
0:02:01 > 0:02:04could mean it's poisonous mushrooms that end up on your plate.
0:02:04 > 0:02:08We probably take around 200 calls each year from doctors,
0:02:08 > 0:02:11nurses and paramedics about suspected poisoning with fungi.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14With so many sheep in British fields,
0:02:14 > 0:02:17why do we still buy in thousands of tonnes of lamb from New Zealand?
0:02:17 > 0:02:21From June till January, you know, there really is no need then,
0:02:21 > 0:02:24at that time. We have a plentiful supply and it's a good,
0:02:24 > 0:02:28healthy, wholesome product at the best possible price.
0:02:32 > 0:02:35You only have to turn on the latest TV cookery show these days to find
0:02:35 > 0:02:39a celebrity chef who's talking about how important it is that the food
0:02:39 > 0:02:44that we eat is seasonal, fresh, and that we know where it comes from.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47And if it comes from nearby, then, all the better.
0:02:47 > 0:02:50But it does seem that there's one particular food where the
0:02:50 > 0:02:52demand for it to be fresh,
0:02:52 > 0:02:56seasonal and locally sourced could cause more harm than good,
0:02:56 > 0:02:59and that's mushrooms.
0:02:59 > 0:03:02Now, the best mushrooms are considered a real delicacy
0:03:02 > 0:03:04and may well be priced accordingly.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06But there are fears that not every mushroom that
0:03:06 > 0:03:10finds its way from the forest onto the market, or indeed a restaurant
0:03:10 > 0:03:14menu, has been picked by someone who really knows what they're doing.
0:03:14 > 0:03:19And if they've mistaken a delicious mushroom for a deadly one,
0:03:19 > 0:03:21the repercussions could be lethal.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28Sara Cadbury is on the hunt for a tasty treat.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31Ooh, there's some puff balls.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36They're busy releasing their spores. Look at that.
0:03:36 > 0:03:40Wow, look at that! That's impressive.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43She's looking to see which of the mushrooms that
0:03:43 > 0:03:46she finds could make a tasty treat.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49And the ancient woodland of the New Forest in Hampshire
0:03:49 > 0:03:51is the perfect spot to find them.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55Very common, grows on most kinds of wood.
0:03:56 > 0:03:58Pretty thing.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01And there's never been a better time to forage,
0:04:01 > 0:04:05with many well-known chefs extolling the culinary benefits
0:04:05 > 0:04:08of picking your own tasty fungi.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11But it's not just the taste that makes these specimens so precious.
0:04:11 > 0:04:14With more and more restaurants serving up the delicacy,
0:04:14 > 0:04:18these forest fungi have also become very valuable.
0:04:18 > 0:04:23The mushrooms are definitely sold on to the London restaurants,
0:04:23 > 0:04:26where they are advertised as freshly picked New Forest
0:04:26 > 0:04:30mushrooms and then, can command, really, a very good price.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35Wild, locally picked mushrooms can sell for anywhere between
0:04:35 > 0:04:37£20 and £50 a kilo.
0:04:37 > 0:04:41But Sara, who's a member of a local group that monitors the forest
0:04:41 > 0:04:44mushrooms, is worried that during the peak foraging season
0:04:44 > 0:04:47from September to November, the forest is attracting not just those
0:04:47 > 0:04:50who want to sample the fungi for themselves,
0:04:50 > 0:04:53but also those who want to cash in.
0:04:53 > 0:04:57People have come in minibuses, and they walk line abreast through
0:04:57 > 0:05:01the woods and then, that minibus will pick them up, sort of a mile
0:05:01 > 0:05:04away, the other side of the wood.
0:05:04 > 0:05:10And they will have picked pounds and pounds and pounds of fungi,
0:05:10 > 0:05:12which is a very valuable haul.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16But it's not just the damage to the forest that this mass-scale
0:05:16 > 0:05:19foraging is causing. If the people picking them, and may be going on to
0:05:19 > 0:05:23sell them to markets or restaurants, have mistaken a poisonous mushroom
0:05:23 > 0:05:28for an edible one, the consequences can be disastrous.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31Well, I just noticed this - it's definitely not an edible mushroom
0:05:31 > 0:05:33although it probably wouldn't poison you,
0:05:33 > 0:05:36but it would give you a stomach upset, but this is
0:05:36 > 0:05:41the sort of thing that could be collected by commercial pickers.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44And the authorities around forests where these fungi flourish
0:05:44 > 0:05:47are worried about where they could end up next.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51They fear poisonous mushrooms could end up being sold on to
0:05:51 > 0:05:54restaurants or find their way into our own kitchens,
0:05:54 > 0:05:57so they're determined to stop that happening.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00You know, there's nothing quite like the smell of a newly picked
0:06:00 > 0:06:03fungi or mushroom.
0:06:03 > 0:06:05It really is quite exceptional
0:06:05 > 0:06:08and providing, in the New Forest, I wasn't to pick more than 1.5 kilos,
0:06:08 > 0:06:10I'd be well within the law.
0:06:10 > 0:06:14But here in Epping Forest, which is right on the edge
0:06:14 > 0:06:17of the City of London, it is absolutely illegal
0:06:17 > 0:06:20and has been for centuries.
0:06:20 > 0:06:24But more recently, foraging for fungi, for mushroom,
0:06:24 > 0:06:29has become such a huge problem that they now have forest keepers
0:06:29 > 0:06:33who patrol the whole forest and uphold the bylaws.
0:06:33 > 0:06:37And if you took anything out of the forest, you'd be prosecuted.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42Last year, Epping Forest prosecuted 20 people for illegal
0:06:42 > 0:06:44mushroom foraging.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48Nick Baker, the senior forest keeper, patrols the area.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50So how big has the problem become?
0:06:50 > 0:06:53It's been a really big problem.
0:06:53 > 0:06:56Last year, we had issues with car parks that normally only
0:06:56 > 0:07:02have four or five cars, had 40 cars in. It was as obvious as that.
0:07:02 > 0:07:06And people were going out and just disappearing in large groups,
0:07:06 > 0:07:09just picking whatever they found, some edible, some inedible.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12On one Saturday alone, I confiscated 50 kilos.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16And that was just a very small percentage of what we were losing.
0:07:16 > 0:07:20Morning patrols like this one are a way of clamping down
0:07:20 > 0:07:25and protecting the 1,600 species of fungi that grow in the forest.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27Well, we have increased patrolling in areas
0:07:27 > 0:07:29where we know they're going to be.
0:07:29 > 0:07:31We will take them to court and will prosecute them
0:07:31 > 0:07:33under the Epping Forest Act.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35And it's not an insignificant amount.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38It's £200 maximum fine,
0:07:38 > 0:07:41and with adds to that cost, you're looking at £300-£400.
0:07:41 > 0:07:46With names like the destroying angel, panther cap, death cap,
0:07:46 > 0:07:48it doesn't take me to you tell you there are some
0:07:48 > 0:07:53mushrooms and fungi in British woodland that are best avoided.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56But when you've got individuals who are foraging and sweeping up
0:07:56 > 0:08:00everything in sight because all they're interested in is the money
0:08:00 > 0:08:04they can make from mushrooms, how can we be sure they have the
0:08:04 > 0:08:07knowledge to be able to distinguish
0:08:07 > 0:08:11between the delicious and the downright dangerous?
0:08:13 > 0:08:17Ecologist Dr Jeremy Dagley also works in Epping Forest
0:08:17 > 0:08:20and sees the hazards that illegal foraging can pose.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23So how experienced do you need to be to be able to
0:08:23 > 0:08:26differentiate between the safe and the killers?
0:08:26 > 0:08:27You really do need to know your stuff.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29You need to know the varieties and variations.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32And if you're putting them in a bag together
0:08:32 > 0:08:35and they're breaking up, you can't be sure which bits you've got.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38And to the untrained, foraging eye, searching for the right
0:08:38 > 0:08:41mushrooms to eat can be tricky.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43So what have you found there, Jeremy?
0:08:43 > 0:08:45You get these fungi that help sustain the beech tree
0:08:45 > 0:08:47and actually feed it.
0:08:47 > 0:08:51But they're a species that include edible ones and non-edible ones,
0:08:51 > 0:08:53even toxic ones.
0:08:53 > 0:08:55And the one you're holding there will make you very ill.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57You can see they're breaking up.
0:08:57 > 0:09:01So again, in a large polythene bag, you'll have all of these bits mixed
0:09:01 > 0:09:04in together and you're never going be able to distinguish, are you?
0:09:04 > 0:09:06- No.- Unless you are a real expert.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11And if you get sick, unless you know the species of mushroom
0:09:11 > 0:09:15you've eaten, it can be hard to know how to treat the poisoning.
0:09:15 > 0:09:17Dr John Thompson is the director
0:09:17 > 0:09:20of The National Poisons Information Service in Cardiff.
0:09:21 > 0:09:25We probably take around 200 calls each year from doctors,
0:09:25 > 0:09:29nurses, paramedics about suspected poisoning with fungi.
0:09:29 > 0:09:33And about ten times that, a couple thousand enquiries on our online
0:09:33 > 0:09:36database each year from people who think they may have been poisoned.
0:09:36 > 0:09:40The service's busiest time coincides with the peak of the mushroom
0:09:40 > 0:09:42foraging season.
0:09:42 > 0:09:43If you eat a mushroom that's poisonous,
0:09:43 > 0:09:46there's several different types of poisoning that can happen.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49The most common thing is gastrointestinal disturbance.
0:09:49 > 0:09:51You'll feel nauseated, you might vomit, you might have some tummy
0:09:51 > 0:09:55trouble, and for most mushrooms, that's all that's going to happen.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58Unfortunately, for some of the more toxic mushrooms,
0:09:58 > 0:10:02you can then go on to develop either liver failure or kidney failure.
0:10:04 > 0:10:08So, if you're tempted by foraged mushrooms,
0:10:08 > 0:10:10the best advice is simple...
0:10:10 > 0:10:12Make sure you know what you're doing.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14If you don't know what it is, don't eat it.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17If you're buying mushrooms, you need to buy them from a reliable,
0:10:17 > 0:10:18reputable source.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29Still to come on Rip-Off Britain - they look harmless enough,
0:10:29 > 0:10:32but what secrets could these innocent-looking foods be hiding?
0:10:36 > 0:10:40Now you might expect that the food that's been shipped or flown
0:10:40 > 0:10:43halfway across the globe is going to cost an awful lot more
0:10:43 > 0:10:46than the equivalent from your own doorstep.
0:10:46 > 0:10:48But that's not always the case, particularly
0:10:48 > 0:10:52when it comes to one of Britain's favourite foods - lamb.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55For some reason, meat that may not have travelled all
0:10:55 > 0:10:58that far from, say from a farm somewhere in Britain,
0:10:58 > 0:11:01is going to often cost a good bit more than the stuff
0:11:01 > 0:11:04that comes from a lot further afield.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07So I've been trying to find out why.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13Every year, more than 16 million lambs are born in the UK.
0:11:13 > 0:11:18But despite that plentiful supply, annually, we still import
0:11:18 > 0:11:22more than 60,000 tonnes of lamb all the way from...
0:11:22 > 0:11:25New Zealand. Now, when you're out shopping, you may not bother
0:11:25 > 0:11:28to spend too much time examining the labels on the food you're
0:11:28 > 0:11:33buying, but British lamb like this, which just came from a few
0:11:33 > 0:11:36miles down the road from where I am now in Wales, has to
0:11:36 > 0:11:42compete for supermarket shelf space with New Zealand lamb like this,
0:11:42 > 0:11:46which has travelled 11,000 miles from the other side of the world.
0:11:48 > 0:11:50Even at the peak of the British lamb season,
0:11:50 > 0:11:55when UK farms produce more lamb than at any other time of the year,
0:11:55 > 0:11:58we still import the stuff halfway around the planet.
0:11:58 > 0:12:00And though prices do vary,
0:12:00 > 0:12:03the New Zealand lamb will usually cost around the same,
0:12:03 > 0:12:05or sometimes even less
0:12:05 > 0:12:08than the lamb that's been born and bred in Britain.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11I wanted to find out how that could possibly be the case,
0:12:11 > 0:12:15so I've come to John Davies' farm in the Brecon Beacons.
0:12:15 > 0:12:19It's home to 1,000-strong flock of prime Welsh sheep, and when I
0:12:19 > 0:12:23went to visit in October, it was one of the busiest periods of the year.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26That is some view, John. I have to say, look at all those sheep.
0:12:26 > 0:12:29The hills are alive with the sound of bleating. We are surrounded
0:12:29 > 0:12:33by so many sheep, why are we importing so much New Zealand lamb?
0:12:33 > 0:12:37Well, I don't know. It's a little frustrating especially
0:12:37 > 0:12:39during the times of peak production.
0:12:39 > 0:12:43From June till January, you know, there really is no need then,
0:12:43 > 0:12:46at that time. We have a plentiful supply and it's a good, healthy,
0:12:46 > 0:12:49wholesome product at the best possible price.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53So are you saying that in season, when British lamb is plentiful,
0:12:53 > 0:12:54that the price is comparable with
0:12:54 > 0:12:56that of the imported New Zealand lamb?
0:12:56 > 0:12:58Well, we are actually cheaper at the present time
0:12:58 > 0:13:01and the wholesalers can't buy New Zealand lamb cheaper than what
0:13:01 > 0:13:04they can buy British at the present time.
0:13:04 > 0:13:06But John, like lots of other farmers,
0:13:06 > 0:13:10is worried that the cheaper British lamb prices in peak season
0:13:10 > 0:13:13may not always be passed on to the consumer.
0:13:13 > 0:13:17It's disappointing to us when on farm lamb is 40 pence a kilo
0:13:17 > 0:13:22cheaper, and to the consumer it's actually 27 pence a kilo
0:13:22 > 0:13:26more expensive. We want to see the price coming down then in the store.
0:13:26 > 0:13:30We compared the price of lamb from Britain and New Zealand at two of
0:13:30 > 0:13:34the major supermarkets that stocked them both at the peak of the season.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37And at the time we checked, in November, the costs didn't
0:13:37 > 0:13:41quite reflect the abundance of cheap British lamb that you might expect.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45At Asda, British and New Zealand legs of lamb were the same
0:13:45 > 0:13:47price all month - £7 a kilo,
0:13:47 > 0:13:51even though the New Zealand ones had flown halfway around the world.
0:13:51 > 0:13:56But at Tesco, an offer on lamb leg steaks from New Zealand meant that
0:13:56 > 0:14:01buying two packs of the imported lamb worked out at £1.66 per kilo -
0:14:01 > 0:14:04cheaper than buying the home-grown stuff.
0:14:04 > 0:14:07And even without that offer, the store's British and New Zealand
0:14:07 > 0:14:11lamb steaks would have cost exactly the same for the first three weeks
0:14:11 > 0:14:14of the month, despite the distance the foreign ones had travelled.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19Pricing like this has landed supermarkets
0:14:19 > 0:14:21in hot water in the past,
0:14:21 > 0:14:25with Welsh farmers protesting that the pricing of their lamb is unfair
0:14:25 > 0:14:28and they've complained to the stores that ran promotional offers
0:14:28 > 0:14:32on New Zealand lamb at the height of the British lamb season.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36So how can it be that lamb flown from so far away can
0:14:36 > 0:14:39compete on price with the meat from so much closer to home?
0:14:39 > 0:14:43Well, put simply, it's because New Zealand has so many sheep!
0:14:45 > 0:14:51John's 1,000-strong flock may sound like an awful lot of sheep,
0:14:51 > 0:14:56and actually it is compared with most UK farms,
0:14:56 > 0:15:01but when it comes to numbers, then, New Zealand sheep farmers
0:15:01 > 0:15:04really do have the edge on their British counterparts.
0:15:07 > 0:15:11There's a staggering 29 million sheep in New Zealand.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14And to find out more, we set up an online chat with
0:15:14 > 0:15:16the head of their farmers' union.
0:15:16 > 0:15:19Rick, can you explain to me the economics of this
0:15:19 > 0:15:24and how it is that New Zealand sheep farmers are able to send lamb
0:15:24 > 0:15:2911,000 miles to British supermarkets and still make it pay?
0:15:29 > 0:15:32It's a combination of a number of things.
0:15:32 > 0:15:34One of things is very good genetics.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37There's been a lot of work done in New Zealand on sheep genetics.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40The other big factor is our climate.
0:15:40 > 0:15:44We can graze our sheep outdoors all year round,
0:15:44 > 0:15:47and so it's very low cost.
0:15:47 > 0:15:54And very, very good grass clover pastures and low labour inputs
0:15:54 > 0:15:57is probably the key.
0:15:57 > 0:16:01UK shoppers were first introduced to New Zealand lamb in the 1950s,
0:16:01 > 0:16:05and there then followed a decades-long marketing campaign
0:16:05 > 0:16:08to convince us that their lamb was better than ours.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11New Zealand lamb shoulder meat is always delicious.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14And to the despair of British sheep farmers,
0:16:14 > 0:16:18that's a message that some consumers have swallowed.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20But it's not all bad news for UK farmers.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23In recent years, the amount of New Zealand lamb we've imported
0:16:23 > 0:16:25has declined by almost a fifth,
0:16:25 > 0:16:29thanks in part to supermarkets like Sainsbury's, Aldi and Lidl
0:16:29 > 0:16:33pledging to stock only British lamb at the peak of the season.
0:16:33 > 0:16:37And for a number of years, Morrisons has gone one step further, getting
0:16:37 > 0:16:43the majority of its lamb from British farmers all year round.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45Because we work directly with the farmers, they know us,
0:16:45 > 0:16:47they're used to working with us,
0:16:47 > 0:16:49they put aside some of their stock, so we can buy lamb later,
0:16:49 > 0:16:52either late lamb, or we can buy hoggets, which is a year-old lamb.
0:16:52 > 0:16:54It's good for us, we get British lamb all year round.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57It's good for them, they get a more stable income across the year.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59How can you make it economically viable?
0:16:59 > 0:17:01Morrisons is a bit different from other supermarkets
0:17:01 > 0:17:03cos we're a food manufacturer as well.
0:17:03 > 0:17:05People think you can only use certain cuts of lamb,
0:17:05 > 0:17:08you can only use a lamb leg and that's the only bit people go for.
0:17:08 > 0:17:10That's not true at all. There's a huge range of it,
0:17:10 > 0:17:12but I think that sometimes people don't recognise that. We try
0:17:12 > 0:17:16and use the full carcass cos it's good for sustainability and
0:17:16 > 0:17:19there's some really great things you can do with different parts of lamb.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22We asked Tesco and Asda
0:17:22 > 0:17:25whether they have any plans to follow other supermarkets
0:17:25 > 0:17:29in stocking just British lamb at the peak of the season.
0:17:29 > 0:17:31Tesco told us it sells...
0:17:33 > 0:17:36And when it's in season, "most of the lamb"
0:17:36 > 0:17:37on their shelves is British.
0:17:39 > 0:17:43And when we asked Asda how British and New Zealand lamb could be
0:17:43 > 0:17:47priced identically at the height of the British season, it said
0:17:47 > 0:17:51that where its meat comes from "has no influence" on price.
0:17:51 > 0:17:52They simply...
0:17:56 > 0:18:00Asda went on to say that it does stock lamb from Wales, Scotland
0:18:00 > 0:18:02and Northern Ireland all year round,
0:18:02 > 0:18:06but that the store simply has to import some lamb from New Zealand,
0:18:06 > 0:18:08because British consumers eat...
0:18:11 > 0:18:12And there...
0:18:17 > 0:18:20So it seems that one key to making British lamb cheaper
0:18:20 > 0:18:23could be for us to eat a wider variety of cuts.
0:18:24 > 0:18:28And that's a passion for this Michelin star-winning chef.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31Stephen Terry insists on using local Welsh lamb
0:18:31 > 0:18:33in his Abergavenny restaurant.
0:18:33 > 0:18:35And not just the popular cuts of meat,
0:18:35 > 0:18:40but the ones that British farmers often struggle to sell at home
0:18:40 > 0:18:42and have to export overseas.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46Less popular ones are the ones being exported, are the neck -
0:18:46 > 0:18:48in France it's very popular.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50- Lots of meat on it too. - Yeah, it's good.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52It comes down further as you can see as well.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56And this part here, what would be called a belly on a pork,
0:18:56 > 0:18:58but on a lamb it's referred to as a breast.
0:18:58 > 0:19:01It's not utilised as much as it should be and it can save you money.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05So give me a few ideas then of how we can get better value
0:19:05 > 0:19:08out of all of these cuts, maybe the more popular
0:19:08 > 0:19:10and familiar ones as well as the less familiar ones.
0:19:10 > 0:19:13Well, for me, it's about slow-cooking,
0:19:13 > 0:19:17because people associate a leg or a shoulder of lamb really with a
0:19:17 > 0:19:22Sunday roast, whereas, you can slow-cook a shoulder or a leg
0:19:22 > 0:19:24throughout the day for your evening meal
0:19:24 > 0:19:27any day of the week for a mid-week meal.
0:19:27 > 0:19:30Well, there's only one way to find out if Stephen's right.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36I have to put my hand up and admit
0:19:36 > 0:19:39I love to cook and I love to eat.
0:19:39 > 0:19:44I have never before eaten or cooked lamb breast,
0:19:44 > 0:19:47but that is absolutely delicious.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51That's definitely going to be on the menu from now on.
0:19:53 > 0:19:58So it took just one meal to convert me to those cheaper cuts of lamb.
0:19:58 > 0:20:01Admittedly, I did have Michelin-starred help,
0:20:01 > 0:20:03but even without Stephen there,
0:20:03 > 0:20:06this is definitely something I'll be trying at home.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11And while that alone may not be the answer that British sheep
0:20:11 > 0:20:14farmers are after, it's definitely moving one step closer to the day
0:20:14 > 0:20:17when it's perhaps British lamb
0:20:17 > 0:20:19that will be filling the supermarket shelves.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28Now, as an island with a pretty wet and not-so-warm climate,
0:20:28 > 0:20:31we need to buy in a lot of what we like to eat from overseas.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34But while we import from all over the planet,
0:20:34 > 0:20:37some of the food coming through our ports and airports
0:20:37 > 0:20:40might not have been treated with the same strict safety standards
0:20:40 > 0:20:43as it would have if it had been produced here in the UK.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47So it could pose a serious risk if it were to go on sale.
0:20:50 > 0:20:52Whether it's rice from India,
0:20:52 > 0:20:54nuts from Brazil or tuna from the Seychelles,
0:20:54 > 0:20:56almost a fifth of the food
0:20:56 > 0:21:00we eat in the UK every year is brought in from outside Europe.
0:21:00 > 0:21:04And that means it may not always have been grown, farmed or made
0:21:04 > 0:21:08in the same way as if it had come from the UK.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11Even so, everything that's sold here - wherever it's come from -
0:21:11 > 0:21:15has to meet the same standards for hygiene, cleanliness,
0:21:15 > 0:21:19additives and chemicals as anything that is grown or made here.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23Jon Griffin and his team at Kent Scientific are one of ten UK
0:21:23 > 0:21:27local authority labs charged with inspecting the food and drink
0:21:27 > 0:21:30we import from abroad, and intercepting anything
0:21:30 > 0:21:33that might be dangerous before it ends up in our trolleys.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35So, John, you're bringing me a few goodies, are you?
0:21:35 > 0:21:39Yes. I'm bringing you a trolley of a selection of foods, which have
0:21:39 > 0:21:42been listed with some potential issues in terms of their safety.
0:21:42 > 0:21:43So you want to poison me really?
0:21:43 > 0:21:46I'm going to test you more than anything else
0:21:46 > 0:21:48to see whether you would know what the problems are.
0:21:48 > 0:21:51The EU has some of the most stringent food
0:21:51 > 0:21:52restrictions in the world.
0:21:52 > 0:21:56And while, of course, most of the food we import from outside Europe
0:21:56 > 0:21:59succeeds in meeting them, some of it doesn't,
0:21:59 > 0:22:01often because it contains banned additives,
0:22:01 > 0:22:04or the additives are at dangerously high levels.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09It's fruit and veg that we buy in more than anything else -
0:22:09 > 0:22:12£9 billion worth in 2013.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16But in a recent shipment of apricots like these from Turkey,
0:22:16 > 0:22:19John's team found dangerous levels of an artificial additive.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24The problem with the apricots, and whether you know this or not,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27they do have a preservative, especially when they're this colour.
0:22:27 > 0:22:28Do you mean a natural preservative?
0:22:28 > 0:22:31- It's not a natural preservative, it's an artificial additive.- OK.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35And that's called sulphur dioxide. And sulphur dioxide is also
0:22:35 > 0:22:39an allergen, so at too high levels it can cause problems,
0:22:39 > 0:22:43especially for people who have got breathing problems such as asthma.
0:22:43 > 0:22:44So how high were the levels?
0:22:44 > 0:22:48Well, the levels were certainly in excess of 2,000 parts per million,
0:22:48 > 0:22:51- which is a lot in terms of an additive level.- Wow!
0:22:52 > 0:22:56The apricots had far more sulphur dioxide than the EU allows,
0:22:56 > 0:22:59so if they had made it on sale, they could have had serious
0:22:59 > 0:23:02implications for anybody with breathing difficulties.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06Laboratories like this do random spot checks on shipments of food
0:23:06 > 0:23:09coming into ports right across the country,
0:23:09 > 0:23:12and if just one of those tests finds something
0:23:12 > 0:23:15that breaks the rules, then everything from that supplier might
0:23:15 > 0:23:19have to be checked until they can prove they've cleaned up their act.
0:23:19 > 0:23:21The tests can also show
0:23:21 > 0:23:25if food has somehow been contaminated thanks to poor hygiene,
0:23:25 > 0:23:29as was the case with a recent shipment of sesame seeds like these.
0:23:29 > 0:23:31These have come from India,
0:23:31 > 0:23:34and the issues with sesame seeds have been more to do with hygiene,
0:23:34 > 0:23:37so they're finding bacteria, especially salmonella.
0:23:37 > 0:23:38Because of bad handling?
0:23:38 > 0:23:41Bad handling, obviously the source of salmonella is animals,
0:23:41 > 0:23:43so, yes, it's probably down to poor hygiene.
0:23:43 > 0:23:47These are monkey nuts, nuts in shells from Brazil,
0:23:47 > 0:23:51and these have been found to have higher levels of aflatoxin in them.
0:23:51 > 0:23:55If they're stored poorly in a high climate, high humidity, moulds
0:23:55 > 0:23:59can grow, and if the moulds grow and mature, then the toxins will form.
0:23:59 > 0:24:03If the sesame seeds or monkey nuts hadn't been seized and stopped
0:24:03 > 0:24:06from going on sale, the food poisoning they could have caused
0:24:06 > 0:24:10wouldn't have been detected until someone fell ill after eating them.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12So would all these foods that you've talked about so far,
0:24:12 > 0:24:15would they, therefore, be taken off the shelves?
0:24:15 > 0:24:18They would be stopped at source. If they've come in through imports,
0:24:18 > 0:24:20they would be stopped and rejected and either destroyed
0:24:20 > 0:24:23or exported back. Once they find a problem, then,
0:24:23 > 0:24:26there will be a routine stop on that product until that problem goes away.
0:24:27 > 0:24:31And it's not just shipments from one bad supplier that might be affected.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35In some cases, all products originating from a particular area
0:24:35 > 0:24:40may have extra inspections to be sure there isn't a wider problem.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43At the moment, there are around 40 products on an EU-wide
0:24:43 > 0:24:46list of imports that are given these additional checks
0:24:46 > 0:24:48because of problems in the past.
0:24:48 > 0:24:51For example, there are currently additional checks
0:24:51 > 0:24:55on half of all dried beans coming to the UK from Nigeria,
0:24:55 > 0:24:58and a fifth of the almonds from Australia.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01So, Jon's confident that everything possible is being done
0:25:01 > 0:25:04to stop toxic imports from hitting the shelves.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07The final warning is they have been identified as having problems.
0:25:07 > 0:25:09They are not on the shelves at the moment.
0:25:09 > 0:25:11They did not get past import.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13But, the important thing is just to stay vigilant
0:25:13 > 0:25:16and we will keep weeding them out as they come through.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18We won't be nibbling on these things, will we?
0:25:18 > 0:25:19No, definitely not on those ones.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28Here at Rip-Off Britain, we're always ready to investigate
0:25:28 > 0:25:31more of your stories on any subject.
0:25:31 > 0:25:34Confused over your bills or just trying to wade through
0:25:34 > 0:25:35never-ending small print?
0:25:36 > 0:25:39It's very frustrating because it makes what should be
0:25:39 > 0:25:42a quite simple job a lot more complicated and, I think,
0:25:42 > 0:25:44some people just give up and so they don't get the best deal.
0:25:44 > 0:25:49Maybe you're unsure what to do when you discover you've lost out
0:25:49 > 0:25:53and that so-called great deal has ended up costing you money.
0:25:53 > 0:25:55People are buying into this, I did, you know,
0:25:55 > 0:25:59and are they going to be as awkward with them as they were with me?
0:25:59 > 0:26:01You might have a cautionary tale of your own
0:26:01 > 0:26:04and want to share the mistakes that you've made with us.
0:26:04 > 0:26:08Well, it upsets me an awful lot, because, you know, I'm retired
0:26:08 > 0:26:12and I begrudge having to pay that kind of money out.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15You can write to us at...
0:26:23 > 0:26:26Or send us an e-mail to...
0:26:30 > 0:26:35The Rip-Off team is ready and waiting to investigate your stories.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40Well, as we've seen today,
0:26:40 > 0:26:42it's really important that we know the full background
0:26:42 > 0:26:44of the food we eat -
0:26:44 > 0:26:47where it's from, how it was made, and exactly what's in it.
0:26:47 > 0:26:50It's certainly reassuring to see how many people
0:26:50 > 0:26:53and organisations there are finding all that out on our behalf,
0:26:53 > 0:26:57but it really does pay to understand some of it ourselves, especially
0:26:57 > 0:27:02when the words on the label may not always mean quite what you think.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05But these days, of course, some people are much more bothered about
0:27:05 > 0:27:08whether they're getting fresh local ingredients than perhaps
0:27:08 > 0:27:11they were in the past, which is why so many menus outline in great
0:27:11 > 0:27:14detail where absolutely everything's come from.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17And thankfully, the cases of them getting it wrong,
0:27:17 > 0:27:20as they could with those foraged mushrooms, are few and far between.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24So perhaps it's no wonder that when things do go wrong with our food
0:27:24 > 0:27:26it can make national headlines,
0:27:26 > 0:27:29so we do really have to rely on those people who are responsible
0:27:29 > 0:27:33for checking that everything we buy is safe and as it should be.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36Well, I'm afraid that's all we have time for today,
0:27:36 > 0:27:40but we'll be back to investigate more stories very soon, so, please,
0:27:40 > 0:27:43do keep sending them in to is on any topic, of course, not just food.
0:27:43 > 0:27:45We really do love receiving them.
0:27:45 > 0:27:48But in the meantime, from everyone on the team,
0:27:48 > 0:27:49- bye-bye.- Bye-bye.- Bye.