South Ayrshire Council - Council News

“The Glen of Iniquity” Warning over Batch of Fake Vodka

South Ayrshire Council’s Trading Standards Officers are warning consumers and traders alike that fake bottles of a very popular local brand of vodka have been discovered on sale in stores.

The Glen Catrine brand, which is distilled in Ayrshire, is a favourite with local drinkers and most off-sales keep plenty in stock. However one brand loyal consumer felt the Glen’s Vodka he had bought just didn’t taste quite as good as it usually did. He suspected he hadn’t bought the real thing and complained to Trading Standards. They took up his complaint, had the bottle examined, and confirmed it as counterfeit. They then checked many other local stores and found three which had a quantity of the fake vodka on sale mixed with genuine vodka.

A spokesperson for South Ayrshire Trading Standards said, “Our investigations are ongoing at this stage and it isn’t quite clear where the fake batch has come from. The bottles and labels are almost identical to the real thing apart from one slight but very crucial error. The fake bottles are easily spotted as the ‘i’ is missing from the word “Ayrshire”. It is spelt as “Ayrshre” in small print at the bottom of the label. Clearly the vodka inside is also not that which is locally produced to the quality and safety standards by the Glen Catrine Distillery, and we are urging consumers to be careful.

We would ask anyone who discovers they have purchased a counterfeit bottle to get in touch with Trading Standards. The fact that several traders had the fake bottles in stock means this was not an isolated problem and we are attempting to trace the source of the batch. So far it is only the 70cl bottles which are affected. Until the investigation is complete we would also ask any local licensees to check their stocks and be extra vigilant with their suppliers. We would like to reiterate to all alcohol sellers that they should never accept stock from an unsecure source or a supplier they cannot verify. In the meantime the vodka is being examined by the public analyst and the results are due in the next few days.

Councillor Peter Convery, who is responsible for Trading Standards matters said: “This is a disappointing find but I am pleased that we have acted quickly to remove the fake vodka from sale. This incident also shows that counterfeiters will copy any popular brand where they think they can make money by ripping off consumers and genuine producers. Many consumers mistakenly believe it is only the very well known designer brands or premium priced products that are copied. In fact many popular products are targeted by the counterfeiters, and to make it more difficult the quality of the copies is always improving, apart obviously from one crucial mistake this time. There is no way of knowing where the money made from this fake batch will end up, but counterfeiters are often linked to much more sinister and serious criminal activities. Trading Standards Officers in South Ayrshire work closely with their counterparts in East and North Ayrshire Councils under the “Fake Free Ayrshire” initiative to combat such crimes. We will ensure that we always clamp down on counterfeits in order to protect the economic well-being and safety of consumers and producers alike”.

Trading Standards are urging anyone who finds bottles of the fake Glen Catrine Vodka, or anyone who has information about other counterfeiting activity, to get in touch on telephone number
01292 616060 or by emaiing cabac@south-ayrshire.gov.uk . Further information about Trading Standards in South Ayrshire can be found by logging on to www.south-ayrshire.gov.uk/tradingstandards/

July 2007