Fight against candy shops heats up after huge haul of sweets is incinerated
An Oxford Street candy shop has been punished for a second time following a raid by Environmental Health teams.
The store had nearly £3,000 worth of sweets incinerated after they were found to contain ingredients that are banned in the UK.
The raid uncovered illegal KitKats, Lion Bars, Fanta and Lucky Charms that Westminster Council deemed dangerous and harmful. They also contained ingredients that were not written in English, preventing consumers from checking sell by dates and allergens.
The same shop was previously punished for selling Swedish Fish and Hot Tamales sweets. Those products were banned because of the harm they can cause to children.
In total, the shop has had more than 3,000 items confiscated over the last three months and now faces large fines.
High streets up and down the UK have been blighted by murky American candy stores.
In June 2022, there were a series of raids by Westminster Council relating to a tax scam investigation. More than 30 shops across the West End were subsequently accused of avoiding £5.4 million in business rates.
In October that year, more than £200,000 in fake goods were seized – police posted a picture of the confiscated goods with the caption ‘playtime’s over’.
Council leader Adam Hug said: ‘We are continuing to make the lives of unscrupulous traders a nightmare through regular enforcement action and putting pressure on landlords.
‘This collection of illegal sweets was enough to send a shiver down anyone’s spine.
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‘There are more raids coming in the next few weeks, so I hope traders who seem happy to sell illegal goods to children are ready for a fright.’
Many towns and cities have been hostile to candy shops, with Oxford Street being a particular focus because of the number of them.
For a long time, Londoners have tried to bring life back into the famous shopping street, including plans for traffic to be banned.
Some of the initiatives have seen success, including HMV reopening its flagship store after it was taken over by a sweet shop.
Last year small businesses were offered rent-free spaces to prevent more American candy shops from opening, with ‘innovative and cutting-edge’ shops encouraged to apply.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
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