Several major food brands in Australia are selling tomato products grown in China as domestically produced, with forensic testing showing some are sourced from the Xinjiang region, an investigation by the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) said.Supermarket chains Coles Group Ltd and budget competitor Aldi — along with widely sold brand Leggo’s — were found to be selling tomato products that independent scientific testing found had originated in China, it said.The products were labeled as being sourced from Australia or Italy, it said.
Tomatoes are displayed at a supermarket in New York on Tuesday last week.
The testing was commissioned by the ABC’s Four Corners and conducted by forensic laboratory Source Certain, which the broadcaster said has worked with the FBI, Scotland Yard, Interpol and the Australian Federal Police.The findings could further erode consumers’ trust in Australia’s supermarket sector, which is already under scrutiny after pricing controversies. They also add pressure on food-labeling rules, as regulators and politicians question whether the country’s highly concentrated grocery market gives shoppers enough transparency and choice.
US-based Simplot, which owns the Leggo’s brand, told Bloomberg it takes product integrity and responsible sourcing “extremely seriously.”“We are confident our Australian Grown claims are accurate and there is nothing in our records to indicate these products are anything other than Australian grown,” a Simplot spokesperson said, adding that they had checked all the batch codes provided by the ABC.An Aldi spokesperson rejected the claims, saying suppliers are required “to have full evidence of traceability of both raw materials and production of these two products, which are sourced from Italy and Australia.”A spokesperson for Coles said the grocer “has no evidence” that Chinese tomatoes were used in the paste products identified by the program. “We strongly reject any suggestion that Coles knowingly misled customers, engaged in food fraud or profited from food fraud,” they said.More than 900 samples covering 221 tomato products from 39 brands were tested, with Source Certain saying its results were more than 98 percent accurate.Local tomato labels that passed country-of-origin testing included Mutti and Coles competitor Woolworths Group Ltd, the ABC said.
