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Scotland is famous for its top-quality food and drink, such as salmon, beef and Scotch whisky, with products branded as Scottish often commanding premium prices. However, where there is money to be made, there is an opportunity for fraud. In this episode, David Wilson investigates recent scams where fraudsters took advantage of the Scotland brand to rip off unsuspecting consumers.

Fake British whisky dealer Casey Alexander took millions of dollars from Americans who invested in his whisky casks that turned out not to exist. David learns more about the boom in whisky investment from whisky consultant Blair Bowman, who details the ways in which unscrupulous fraudsters are seeking to exploit it by offering dodgy deals. Some companies are offering huge returns to investors if they buy casks of whisky – claims which are often too good to be true. These scams damage the reputation of the whisky industry in Scotland, which is now worth over $6 billion per year.

David also talks to Ron McNaughton about how food fraud is being combatted in Scotland. David also explores the direct impact of this kind of fraud on Scottish producers with an owner of a high-end charcuterie business based in Leith who discovered that some five-star hotels in Scotland were advertising his products on their menus but were in fact serving something much cheaper.