The NFU Mutual Food Fraud Report 2017 revealed that almost three quarters of consumers believe the U.K. suffers food fraud issues and one fifth would blame the retailer first.

Over 2,000 people were surveyed for the study and one third admitted trusting products and retailers less than they did five years ago.

"The U.K. food and drink industry could be losing up to £12bn annually to fraud, entering the food chain through means including falsified or inaccurate documentation and redirection of waste products back into the supply chain or re-dating of stock," said Frank Woods, retail specialist at NFU Mutual.

He added that this behaviour threatens the reputation of thousands of honest businesses relying on lawfulness within the global food chain.

“Retailers could be impacted as producers are under immense pressure to offset price rises caused by the weakened value of sterling and higher import costs, squeezing already tight budgets and resources and potentially cornering them into using cheaper global suppliers that may be more vulnerable to fraud.”

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