Illegal Vodka On Sale In Bournemouth

Trading Standards have told Heart they're worried that illegal 'Drop Vodka' may be on sale in other parts of Bournemouth - after five bottles of it were found on sale at a store in the town centre.

The vodka contains potentially dangerous chemicals, and the Food Standards Agency issued a warning about it in November:

"The Food Standards Agency is warning consumers not to drink an illegal brand of vodka called Drop Vodka, which has been found on sale in some shops.

Consumers are advised not to drink the vodka because it is not registered by any company in the UK and could be harmful. Usually, food and drink goes through rigorous testing before it is placed on the market but because 'Drop Vodka' is not registered, it has not been through this process, so the Agency cannot be sure what is in the product.

Tests carried out by local authorities have identified the presence of Propan-2-ol and methanol in some of the vodka, and other substances that could harm people’s health.

Colin Houston, Head of Incidents and Food Fraud at the Food Standards Agency, said: 'We urge consumers not to buy "Drop Vodka".

It may be cheap, but people have got to ask if it is a price worth paying if their health could be at stake. We are working closely with local authorities to catch these criminals who are trying to profit by putting people’s health at risk.'

Other tests have found that the product does not contain enough alcohol to be called vodka. Legally, vodka should contain no less than 37.5% alcohol but ‘Drop Vodka’ has levels of 28.6% alcohol. There are also some labelling issues with ‘Drop Vodka’, particularly the lack of producer’s details, which are needed to ensure that the vodka is fully traceable.

If consumers discover any 'Drop Vodka' on sale, they should contact their local authority or call the Food Standards Agency food fraud hotline on 020 7276 8527."