Midlothian shop caught selling counterfeit vodka

Wednesday October 16th 2024

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Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Luke Jackson

A shop in Midlothian has been caught selling counterfeit vodka containing industrial alcohol.

The discovery was made when our Environmental Health Team carried out spot checks on retail premises after reports of Scotland-wide sales of fake half bottles of vodka labelled ‘Glen’s’.

Laboratory checks on the vodka seized, later confirmed it was counterfeit and contained a toxic industrial alcohol with the chemical isopropyl (IPA), which is not suitable for human consumption.

Ingesting any amount of isopropyl could cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, intoxication, difficulty breathing and even death.

Symptoms can be immediate or delayed for up to 30 hours. Anyone who symptoms should seek medical attention calling NHS 111 in the first instance or 999 in an emergency.

Isopropyl alcohol has a strong smell and it may be possible to detect contaminated products by smell alone.

Genuine bottles of Glen’s vodka have a laser etched lot code applied to the bottle between the rear label and the base of the bottle. The bottles also have other identifying marks. The counterfeit bottles do not have the etched lot code nor the related marks.

Any customers who think they may have a counterfeit bottle of Glen’s should obviously not drink it and contact Midlothian Council’s Environmental Health Team on 0131 271 3345 as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Food Standards Scotland’s Food Crime and Incidents Unit is investigating this case, which came to light in September.

Retailers are reminded that they should only be purchasing products from reputable suppliers

If anyone has any information on the manufacture or sale of counterfeit alcohol they should contact the Scottish Food Crime Hotline (0800 028 7926) in partnership with Crimestoppers. The hotline is free and anonymous.

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