2 Sisters to make audit and inspection results public in food industry first
In an industry first, the food group at the centre of a hygiene scandal in West Bromwich has promised to make public the results of all inspections at its sites.
The action comes as 2 Sisters has hit out at fresh allegations over hygiene at its Coupar Angus site in Scotland over the same weekend as the West Bromwich site was closed.
"There is and never was any risk to food safety at Coupar Angus," said the company.
2 Sisters has seen its profits hit and its reputation dragged through the mire since problems were exposed at its chicken processing factory in Dial Lane.
Founder and boss Ranjit Singh Boparan, dubbed the Black Country Chicken King, had to appear before a Commons committee of MPs and the company now has inspectors from the Food Standards Agency based at its site full time.
But the company – which supplies Tesco, Marks & Spencer and Aldi – has now announced it will publish all UK poultry audit and inspection data from its customers, standard owners and regulatory bodies.
The company has said the move is part of its commitment to transparency within the food supply chain.
In a statement on its website, 2 Sisters says: "We will be the first in the industry to do this and we hope this bold step will allow us to work with regulators, standard owners and customers to develop a system for all to use."
The company employs 23,000 people at sites across the UK and Europe, including factories in Wolverhampton and Smethwick, It says that between the beginning of July and the end of November there were 150 audits or inspections in its chicken processing sites, 114 unannounced, 36 announced.
"These have identified a number of areas where improvement is needed but no food safety issues." 107 of these have taken place since the TV report on the West Bromwich site, in October.
All 10 chicken processing plants currently carry a grade 'A' rating under the BRC Food Safety Scheme, the industry's most widely adopted audit scheme. One, in Llangefni, is rated 'AA' – the maximum.
The hygiene concerns at the West Bromwich plant led to it being shut down for more than a month while its 850-strong workforce underwent retraining. It had already seen deliveries suspended by customers such as Tesco, Sainsbury's, M&S, Lidl and Aldi.
Deliveries were resumed following the all-clear from the Food Standards Agency and a string of actions by 2 Sisters, including addition CCTV supervision of its factory workers and full time food inspectors.
