The anatomy of ‘So-called Food-Fraud Scandals’ in the UK 1970–2018: Developing a contextualised understanding

Abstract

In the last four decades, the food industry in the United Kingdom has been subject to a considerable number of so-called "food-fraud scandals". These incidents mainly relate to actual or alleged fraudulent activity which has resulted in public outcries about the criminality and industry malpractices which may underpin them. An analysis of these 'scandals' reveals that there is a 'scripted' nature to both their revelation and resolution, which can be modelled to help better understand how to investigate and theorise these incidents in context. This approach enables a better, more nuanced understanding of how to read the signs that link an incident to a given modus operandi and as a consequence enables relevant actors to take more appropriate and timely responsive actions, especially in the midst of a scandal narrative. Eight food related incidents are scrutinised, some termed scandals, and others that whilst receiving local or national media attention were not framed in the associated discourse as 'being scandals.' These case studies demonstrate the contextualised anatomies of each specific incident to then identify the associated scripted themes and responses. The framework developed as an output from this research is of value in recognising the stages and nuances of a food-fraud scandal narrative.

Using Script and Textual Analysis and Close Readings of Media Reports to Analyse ‘So-Called Food-Fraud Scandals’

“…The genesis of the original research article upon which this case is based (see Smith, Manning & McElwee, 2022) began circa 2019, when two of the authors were engaged in a study into the so-called Horsemeat scandal (Smith & McElwee, 2019) and noticed that many of the media articles on the scandal [and food-fraud in general] appeared to be written to a formulaic script. They then wrote a further paper (Smith et al, 2019).…”

“…Indeed, Food-fraud is a complex activity but is often regarded as food that is misrepresented or tainted for economic gain (Southey, 2019) when in fact the modus-operandi of people involved in disingenuous, even criminal behaviour has many other facets. It can and does involve organised criminal activity and insider crime (Smith et al, 2022). One challenge in undertaking research in this area is the multidisciplinary nature of the research enquiry and researching across disciplinary barriers.…”

“…When a Foodfraud incidence is regarded as a scandal it can be viewed by the public as being old news and therefore dismissed as being dated information. Smith et al, (2022) note that the overuse of the term 'scandal' in Food-fraud incidents (and other forms of criminal and non-regulatory practices of the food industry) obfuscates the intrinsic elements of criminality, hindering investigation, and allocation of appropriate resources. In the 'Food-fraud scandals' considered by Smith et al, (2022) there is a focus on the alleged or actual criminal and commercial logic involved.…”

“…Smith et al, (2022) note that the overuse of the term 'scandal' in Food-fraud incidents (and other forms of criminal and non-regulatory practices of the food industry) obfuscates the intrinsic elements of criminality, hindering investigation, and allocation of appropriate resources. In the 'Food-fraud scandals' considered by Smith et al, (2022) there is a focus on the alleged or actual criminal and commercial logic involved. The research question was -"How does the introduction of the term 'scandal' and its related scripts influence media accounts of Food-fraud?…”

“…This is a distinct possibility in the future. We would advise readers planning to do their own research projects based on the methodologies used in Smith et al, (2022) to get on with it and enjoy it. Familiarise yourselves with the processes and protocols involved but 'own them' and make them your own work.…”