Millions of takeaway doner kebab lovers have unknowingly eaten goat, skin and fat instead of lamb — and a major UK supplier has now been fined £500,000 for the fraud.
DNA testing by trading standards officers in Swansea revealed that kebabs from Kismet Kebabs, one of the UK's largest doner kebab makers, contained “less than 10% sheep” despite being advertised as up to 87% lamb.
“DNA tests show 'lamb' kebabs from major UK supplier contained less than 10% sheep; firm fined £500,000.”
The Essex-based company, which produces more than 100 tonnes of kebab varieties every week, admitted one count of fraud by false representation and was ordered to pay the penalty. Investigators estimate the firm made £6m from the deception.
Concerns were first raised when trading standards officers in Swansea began randomly DNA-testing doner meat from takeaways in the city in 2020 and 2021. “I think some customers won't be surprised there's a lot of skin and fat in these products — but I don't think many people will be expecting goat,” said Rhys Harries, a Swansea trading standards officer.
When investigators raided the Kismet factory in May 2021, they found no lamb being delivered. “We didn't see any lamb apart from lamb fat,” Harries said. “There were pallets of goat, pallets of trim, offcuts with high fat content, boxes of fat, boxes of skin, bits of mutton. It all goes into a massive mincer and comes out looking like Play-Doh.”
Kismet Kebabs said the fraud related to “historical events” over five years ago, when the company “operated under a different leadership structure.” The firm was established in 2008.
Harries compared the scale of the fraud to the 2013 horsemeat scandal, when DNA testing revealed horsemeat in beef products across Europe. “It's almost the same as the horsemeat scandal, because of the volume of product that was going out of this factory,” he said.
The kebabs were sold to fast food outlets across the UK for years, meaning millions of consumers may have been duped — and many may never know exactly what they ate.