Rogue firm behind kebabs for takeaways and restaurants is fined £500,000 for selling 'lamb' made up of mostly skin and fat

Published: 14:15, 8 June 2026 | Updated: 14:25, 8 June 2026 An award-winning kebab distributor was slapped with a £500,000 fine after its 'lamb' doner meat was found to have been predominantly made up of skin and fat.  Kismet Kebabs Ltd, based in Essex, claimed its lamb doner contained 87 per cent meat, however it was found to contain 40 per cent of fat and 51 per cent of meat.  It emerged the company was using a 'large volume of skin, fat and goat', as well as products that could not be legally defined as meat, despite selling the product to takeaways and restaurants as the authentic Turkish delicacy.  The revelations followed an investigation by Swansea Council, which sampled local kebab houses and restaurants across the region between 2020 and 2021, examining both the meat and the descriptions used to market it. Kismet was also ordered by Swansea Crown Court to pay £259,298 in costs, which heard the company acted in 'considerable dishonesty' by knowingly mislabelling the products.  The ruling came just months after Kismet was crowned the winner of the Supplier and Manufacturer Award at the 14th British Kebabs Awards in February.  The company, which was established in 2008, was represented in court by directors Panayiotis Michael and Djemal Enver.  Lee Reynolds, prosecuting on behalf of Swansea Council, told the court on Friday the firm had 'misled wholesalers, retailers and consumers'.  Kismet Kebabs Ltd, based in Essex, claimed its lamb doner contained 87 per cent meat, however it was found to contain 40 per cent of fat and 51 per cent of meat Kismet was ordered by Swansea Crown Court to pay £259,298 in costs, which heard the company acted in 'considerable dishonesty' by knowingly mislabelling the products Mr Reynolds said Kismet fraudulently misled buyers by manufacturing and selling kebabs labelled as containing specific quantities of meat, when the actual contents were substantially different.  He said: 'Much of what was being described as lamb was in fact skin and fat.  'The company routinely and knowingly purchased goat, lamb fat, skin, mutton and ovine [sheep meat], and once processed through their factory sold it as lamb.'  'In addition, other products were sold as specific meat products when the item contained meat of a different species,' the prosecutor added. After lab tests confirmed meat content differed significantly from that written on the labels, Swansea Council made enquiries about the firm with the National Food Crime Unit and Food Standards Agency.  It also emerged Essex Council received numerous complaints about Kismet from local authorities across the UK, raising concerns about the content of the meat sold by the company.  The council, which had a 'long history' with the distributor, ultimately ended its relationship with Kismet due to a 'lack of operation' and 'serious labelling and potential public health issues' uncovered during a factory audit.  Mr Reynolds said on May 20, 2021, a trading standards team led by Swansea Council visited Kismet's Chelmsford factory. Inspectors raised 'multiple concerns' relating to production, packaging and labelling.  Directors Djemal Enver (left) and Panayiotis Michael (right) represented Kismet Ltd at court The court heard the company actually bought a significantly small amount of lamb, while buying a 'large volume of skin, fat and goat', as well as 'lower-grade "meat" products that cannot be called meat as per the legal definition'.  Kismet justified its declared meat content by using mechanically derived meat, which was predominantly made up of 'neck trim, mutton trim, water and ice'.  Mechanically derived meat is a paste-like substance produced by using machines to remove the last edible scraps of meat from an animal carcass, which occurs after premium cuts have been removed. Kismet Kebabs Ltd, of Chelmsford, previously pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by false representation when the case returned to court for sentencing.  Stuart Jessop, defending, said the company had a long track record of running the company successfully and providing good products with customers across the UK. He admitted the firm had 'taken its eye off the ball' but has since rectified its practices. He added it had not substantially profited from its actions and the fine could ultimately force it into bankruptcy.  Judge Huw Reese described the company's fraudulent activity as 'endemic', adding its actions as being taken in 'considerable dishonesty' over a number of years.  The company was given four years to pay.   The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. 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