Meat fear after port pork probe
SCOTTISH PIG producers are demanding that something be done about the tide of illegal meat coming into the UK via Dover before African swine fever (ASF) is brought in with it.
A 24-hour undercover investigation at the port found that large amounts of raw animal product are getting into the UK illegally, despite supposedly increased measures to prevent ASF entering the country.
Since September 1, it has officially been illegal to bring pork or pork products weighing more than 2kg into the country unless they are produced to the EU’s commercial standards. But at the start of October, ‘Operation Ouzo’ checked the adequacy of border controls by doing secondary checks on 22 vehicles of Romanian, Moldovan, Ukrainian and Polish origin – and found raw animal products loosely stored in carrier bags and paper tissue without temperature control, refrigeration or labelled identification, sometimes mixed with readyto-eat products such as cheese, crisps and cake.
Director of the Scottish Pig Disease Control Centre, Andy McGowan, said: “This is deeply disturbing and only demonstrates the very real risk that uncontrolled meat imports present to both people and animals.
“Some 22 vans were checked and illegal meat imports were found in 21 of them. Unfortunately for us, there are up to 10,000 vehicles crossing the Channel every day, so I shudder to think how much substandard product finds its way into UK supply chains.
“Surely the risk to human health must serve as a wakeup call to introduce import health certificates on all meat imports immediately?”