The 'farmed foods' swindle

Foods described as farmhouse fresh or home made are more likely to have been produced on an industrial estate, an official report says today.

It reveals how manufacturers routinely make misleading or simply untrue claims to make mass- produced food sound more palatable. In a sample of more than 200 products it found that up to three quarters of label claims did not meet guidelines.

The survey, by the Food Standards Agency, used officers from 15 local authorities who sampled foods making one of eight common claims - farmhouse, traditional, home made, original, natural, fresh, authentic and pure. It found that across all categories 40 per cent of claims could not be justified, while only a quarter of products labelled farmhouse had ever been near a farm.

Michelle Smyth of the Consumers Association said: "We are very concerned to see these results. They suggest consumers are being misled."

However, a spokesman for the British Retail Consortium called the report "nit-picking". He added: 'Most retailers go above and beyond what is legally required."