Initially, the company called the sourcing problem an “isolated incident” and promised to investigate the extent of the mislabeling in its stores.
However, Reiner and five other sources that have communicated with Eater, including past and present employees as well as two of the companies involved with supplying wholesale meat to Belcampo restaurants and stores, say the issue is deeper than Fernald or Belcampo has admitted. According to the current and former Belcampo employees, intentional product relabeling and a lack of transparency about the source of its products have been open knowledge at the company for months, not just in Santa Monica but also its West Third Street location.
Reps for Belcampo and Anya Fernald declined repeated requests for comment on specific questions raised in this story. Instead, the company sent a general statement to Eater that reads in part: “Outside of the quality of our product, nothing is more important to Belcampo than the trust of our customers. To that end, we have launched a comprehensive audit
