Lamb Doner Without Lamb: Persistent Meat Fraud Uncovered

Lamb doner kebab containing no trace of lamb or sheep has been detected yet again, as another case of meat fraud surfaces in the Netherlands. The recurring problem has occupied Dutch regulators and consumer organizations for years.

A recent laboratory analysis of a product sold as lamb doner found not a single trace of lamb or sheep. Instead, it contained a mix of cheaper meats including beef, chicken, turkey, and even pork. The deception is deliberate: labels, menus, and advertisements explicitly reference lamb while the product contains none.

The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority has long warned that lamb is among the most fraud-prone meats. Previous investigations found that not all unpackaged lamb sold at butchers and smaller supermarkets was 100 percent lamb. Consumer programs have repeatedly exposed that lamb in kebab and shawarma is often a collective term for mixed meat, sometimes containing 100 percent pork in a sandwich sold as lamb.

The NVWA recently flagged another large-scale meat fraud scandal involving forged documents and unsuitable meat entering finished products. According to its 2024 annual report, the agency prioritizes food safety and fraud with tens of thousands of inspections per year. Yet the chances of getting caught remain limited, and the financial incentive for fraud with expensive meats like lamb persists as long as consumers cannot easily verify what is actually on their plates.