Abattoir pair face charges over horse meat traceability

Peter Boddy, who owned the business in Todmorden, and David Moss, who was manager, are accused of breaching food regulations that say meat should be traceable from field to fork.

Sue Patten, head of fraud at the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Following a joint investigation by the Food Standards Agency, Dyfed Powys Police and Calderdale Council, criminal proceedings have been instituted against two individuals for failing to comply with the traceability requirements of horses slaughtered at and sold from premises in Todmorden, West Yorkshire.

“It is alleged that Peter Boddy, owner of a West Yorkshire slaughterhouse and game dealer, and David Moss, the manager of the slaughterhouse, failed to comply with traceability requirements for horses slaughtered at their premises.”

It is claimed that they each committed two breaches of Regulation 4 of the General Food Regulations 2004 between July 2012 and February 12 2013.

Moss is also charged with one count of forgery over claims that he faked an invoice for the sale of horse meat.

The pair are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on April 14.

It is not being alleged that the horse meat was being sold as another meat. Under the law, operators of food businesses should be able to provide details of where the animal came from and to whom it was supplied at every stage of the process.

Ms Patten said yesterday: “The decision to prosecute was taken in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors.

“It has been determined that there is a realistic prospect of conviction and that a prosecution is in the public interest.”

Ms Patten also announced that two men will be charged over the alleged mislabelling of goat meat products intended for sale after another investigation by the Food Standards Agency, Welsh police and Ceredigion Council.

Dafydd Raw-Rees, the owner of Farmbox Meats Limited in Aberystwyth and Colin Patterson, the company representative, are to be charged with 19 offences.