Environment Secretary refuses to rule out US chlorinated chicken
● Which? in call to maintain ‘current high principles’
The UK Environment Secretary has refused to rule out chlorinated chicken and hormone-treated beef being imported from the US in a post-brexit trade deal.
George Eustice also defended the government’s new immigration system after businesses raised fears of a shortage of workers.
His predecessor before the recent reshuffle had insisted the controversial products from the States would not be imported amid animal welfare and environmental fears.
But Mr Eustice, while saying there are “no plans” to change the law, did not explicitly rule it out when pressed three times on the subject. With the Government expected to publish its negotiating position for a free trade deal with Washington within two weeks, he told Sky’s Sophy Ridge On Sunday that the government would not “take risks” on standards of welfare.
But he said “lactic acid washes” are now more commonly used in the US than chlorine, which is unlikely to allay fears over animal welfare because concerns centre on treatment before the washes themselves.
“What I’m saying is we won’t make any moves on our standards, we’ve got a clear position in this country that it is illegal to sell chlorine-washed chicken, illegal to sell beef treated with hormones, we have no plans to change those things,” he said.
The consumer group Which? was highly-critical of the comments and demanded that ministers legislate to “ensure current high principles are preserved and reinforced in future trade deals”.
Sue Davies, its head of consumer protection and food policy, said: “It is astonishing that instead of improved food safety and health, chemical washing techniques for chicken and hormone-treated beef are still being left on the negotiating table when the debate has to be firmly focused on
Labour environment secretary the food standards consumers want.”
National Farmers Union president Minette Batters called for the Government to add protections into law to prevent imports “that fails to meet our food safety, animal welfare and environmental standards”. “If it doesn’t, it will not only fail our farmers but the public too, who quite rightly demand and expect these standards from our own farmers,” she added.
Labour’s shadow environment secretary, Luke Pollard, called for the Tories to introduce a ban on trade deals lowering welfare and environmental standards.
“Chlorinated chicken being sold in Britain is a genuine risk unless this backdoor to lower standard US goods imports is closed and a ban is put into law,” he said.
Tim Farron, Liberal Democrats’ food and rural affairs spokesman, accused the Conservatives of having backed down on their commitment.
“Chlorinated chicken being sold in Britain is a genuine risk unless this backdoor to lower standard US goods imports is closed”
LUKE POLLARD