We are urgently developing research requirements with other European laboratories to make sure we understand and the disease (Schmallenberg) better.Campaign for clearer food labelling
A NEW campaign to encourage clearer food labelling has been launched by the Sunday Telegraph.
The newspaper claims Britain’s food labelling laws ‘are nothing short of baffling’ and allow processed meat products to be labelled as British, even though they are reared abroad.
The paper has called for:
- Clear labels explaining where a food product is processed and where the main meat or fish ingredients are from.
- An end to the current and entirely legal practice of stamping a product ‘British’, even if the main meat or fish ingredient comes from overseas.
The campaign adds weight to the Conservative Party’s ‘honest food campaign’ and piles further pressure on policy makers to change the rules.
Shadow Environment Secretary Nick Herbert said country of origin labelling should be mandatory when he launched his campaign earlier this year.
“A voluntary agreement between major food retailers is inadequate and a compulsory labelling scheme is now essential,” said Mr Herbert, blaming a ‘lack of political will’ from the Government for the current confusion.
Mr Herbert referenced an ICM poll, commissioned by the Conservatives, which revealed 89 per cent of voters would support a labelling system that highlighted where meat was ‘born and bred’.