UK Food Producers 2020-05-19

2020-05-19

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Response quality

Questions & Answers

Q1 Direct Answer
Context
The question arises from the need to support and promote UK food producers in challenging times.
What recent steps have been taken to promote UK food producers?
Our food and farming industry plays a crucial role in challenging times, and we are co-funding a £1 million campaign to promote milk, alongside industry and devolved Government partners. We are also supporting the fishing industry by promoting a wide variety of seafood species from UK waters. A further campaign is promoting beef across the devolved nations, and our Food is GREAT campaign, which showcases internationally products from across our four nations, has delivered successful trade and consumer focused marketing activities.
Assessment & feedback
Response accuracy
Q2 Partial Answer
Context
There is already mandatory country of origin labelling for various food products, and the question arises about expanding this to all meat.
Given that there is already mandatory country of origin labelling for fish, fruit, vegetables, eggs, wine, honey, olive oil and beef, does the Secretary of State agree that now is the right time for mandatory country of origin labelling for all meat, so that consumers can never be misled by dodgy imports produced in conditions that would be unlawful here and which are sold as if they were British?
As my hon. Friend has pointed out, there has been a long-standing legal provision for mandatory country of origin labelling on beef, in which, to claim that the country of origin is the UK, the animal must be born, reared and slaughtered in the UK. Those regulations on mandatory country of origin labelling were extended several years ago to cover all principal meat species. They do not yet extend to processed goods that might contain multiple goods, but there have been significant steps forward in broadening the scope of mandatory country of origin labelling.
Assessment & feedback
The Secretary of State did not commit to expanding mandatory country of origin labelling to all meat, only acknowledging existing regulations and stating that they do not extend to processed goods.
Response accuracy