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Jun 2023

Last Updated: 13/06/2023

Business

Investigations continue into collapsed Bleiker's Smoke House

by Vicky Carr

| 13 Jun, 2023

The company was formerly based at Glasshouses Mill.

Investigations are continuing into alleged food fraud by a company founded in the Harrogate district.

The Food Standards Agency has confirmed it is still looking into allegations made against Bleiker's last year.

The company, established in 1993 and previously based at Glasshouses Mill in Nidderdale, fell into administration in April 2022 before the investigation was announced just days later in May.

This week, Andrew Quinn, deputy head of the national food crime unit at the Food Standards Agency, told the Stray Ferret:

“The FSA’s national food crime unit is investigating alleged food fraud and how a smokehouse supplied a large supermarket retailer with smoked salmon labelled as fresh and Scottish when it was allegedly sourced frozen from Norway.

"We regularly engage with industry to share intelligence, tackling food fraud to protect the consumer. The national food crime unit acted on intelligence it received which resulted in one arrest being made and three further suspects were interviewed voluntarily under caution.

"It is vitally important that we ensure food is safe and what it says it is, and that consumers and food businesses are confident in the authenticity of food they are buying.”

Companies ‘unlikely’ to receive pay-out from Bleiker's Smoke House, say administrators

Food fraud investigation into Bleiker’s Smokehouse

Meanwhile, the latest update from administrators shows the purchaser has not paid the agreed amount for the business' assets.

The unnamed purchaser had agreed to pay £225,000 for stock, as well as fixtures and fittings, the business name and website, and other assets, in a sale which completed in December.

However, the administrators reported the purchaser could not pay the full sum at that time. Having agreed a schedule of £5,000 a month, they have since defaulted and administrators are liaising with solicitors to consider their next steps.

Administrators have also sought legal advice from Leeds-based Schoosmiths solicitors after analysing Bleikers' bank statement activity.

The report said:

"We have carried out an analysis of the company's bank statement activity and reviewed the accounting information available.

"We have sought feedback from our solicitors (Shoosmiths) with regards to certain matters identified during the investigation."

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Investigations continue into collapsed Bleiker's Smoke House

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