Soaring illegal meat imports fuelling food poisoning spike, says horsemeat scandal expert

Earlier this year, LBC exposed how organised criminal gangs were stuffing unrefrigerated animal carcasses into bin bags and hiding them on coaches, vans and cars to smuggle meat into the UK.

Now, exclusive data from Dover Port Health Authority shows the trade has escalated dramatically, with 110 tonnes of illegal meat seized since April - double the amount found in all of 2023.

In September alone, 20 tonnes were confiscated at the port, 15 times the amount discovered in the same month in 2022.

Professor Chris Elliott, Honorary Professor of Food Safety at Queen’s University Belfast, who led the 2013 horsemeat scandal investigation, told LBC there is a "very high probability" smuggled, unregulated meat is now fuelling the surge in food poisoning, particularly in southern England.

"There’s definitely an increase in serious foodborne illness in the UK, and are rising food poisoning cases related to illegal meat imports? My view is – absolutely, they must be," he said.

Latest UK Health Security Agency figures show Campylobacter infections, one of the UK’s most common causes of food poisoning, have risen around 50% since 2023 – from 10,588 cases in the first quarter of 2023 (Jan–March) to 15,838 in the first quarter of 2025.

Salmonella cases have also increased by roughly 20% over the same period, from 1,328 in the first quarter of 2023 to 1,588 in the first quarter of 2025.

In September, UKHSA revealed to LBC they have traced some Salmonella cases to meat reared outside the UK.

Dr Gauri Godbole, Deputy Director for Gastrointestinal Infections, Food Safety and One Health at UKHSA, said:

"We undertake full genome sequencing regularly on all Salmonella cases we detect, and some match strains isolated from imported meat over the years. This definitely contributed to the rise in food poisoning cases seen last year."

Professor Elliott warned the food industry has not changed its practices, suggesting "soaring cases" are being driven by the "big, contaminated elephant in the room – illegal meat imports."

"People involved in this criminal activity realise the likelihood of being caught is practically zero," he said.

"I can pretty much guarantee it won’t be going into big supermarkets, but some of it may end up in cheap eateries or on the high street. If it’s pre-cooked and only reheated, the pathogens survive.

"It’s getting worse, it’s more organised, and the scale is increasing. The highest infection rates are being recorded in the South East – the same region where most illegal meat is seized."

He also warned the issue poses a dual threat – to public health and to UK livestock – with the potential for another foot-and-mouth-style outbreak if contaminated meat is dumped in fields.

Josh Newbury, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for UK Food Security, visited the Port of Dover in July and told LBC:

“When we visited the Port we saw a chest freezer in a van that had meat in it, but there were lots of meat stuffed around it because it wouldn’t fit in the freezer.

“It was wrapped in bags-for-life with sellotape – there were no food or biosecurity measures whatsoever.

“The Port Health Authority staff also didn’t have any PPE. They had latex gloves and that was it, and they were having to handle the meat.”

Head of Port Health and Public Protection at Dover Port Health Authority, Lucy Manzano, says she remains concerned about the volumes of illegal meat that continue to arrive and says the Dover team are doing all they can with the “limited resources” and facilities available.

The Calais to Dover route has been dubbed the “illegal meat highway”, with a spokesperson for Dover Port Health Authority claiming funding from DEFRA only covered 20% of their operations at the Port.

The Association of Independent Meat Suppliers (AIMS) told LBC then that only 0.2% of the estimated 10,000 vehicles passing through Dover each day are checked – equivalent to just one in every 500 vehicles.

In response to our findings, a spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said:

“This Government’s commitment to the country’s biosecurity is unwavering.

“We have tightened import rules and checks on meat from overseas, leading to us seizing significantly more illegal meat at the border.

“We have secured £3.1 million funding for Dover Port Health Authority in 2025/6 to continue to work alongside Border Force in detecting and seizing animal products illegally imported via the Port of Dover.”