Large amounts of illegally imported meat have been seized amid concerns over a potential African swine fever outbreak.

There are growing concerns unlicensed and potentially dangerous products are being smuggled into the county from Europe which could carry the disease.

Health officials say this would have a major impact on UK livestock were an outbreak to occur.

Last week Dartford council’s environmental Health team stopped 170kg of illegally imported meat reaching consumers which will now be destroyed.

It says the importers have been reported to The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the National Food Crime Unit, and the Food Standards Agency.

African swine fever affects all pigs, including wild boar, but is not the same disease as swine flu and does not affect humans.

Defra has issued guidance on the disease, including the countries affected and how to report a case.

This includes if you’re buying meat from abroad to make sure the wholesaler is legitimate and the items meet UK health standards.

Earlier this year some 3.4 tonnes of illegal meat were seized by port authorities in Dover - just days before the introduction of new government checks on imported foods.

One particularly large haul included 54 unmarked sheep carcasses from two vehicles from Romania.

An outbreak of the highly contagious African swine fever has been spreading across Europe’s pig herds since last summer.

And there are concerns since the UK left the EU there has been an absence of proper post-Brexit border controls on meat entering the country.

There were also fears moving commercial food checks for Dover and the Channel Tunnel to Sevington, near Ashford, will create an even bigger risk to British biosecurity.

Some farmers claim this has left them exposed to the introduction of devastating animal diseases.

Ahead of yesterday’s budget (October 30) rural workers and MPs had called on the chancellor Rachel Reeves to fund more stringent border controls to prevent outbreaks.