New meat rules threaten health

31 January 2001



New meat rules ‘threaten health’

By FWi staff

PUBLIC health could be put at risk by possible reforms to the way in which meat is inspected in Britain, claim inspectors representatives.

THE Food Standards Agency is considering a system of self-regulation in meat plants to bring Britain into line with other countries.

Abattoirs would carry out their own meat safety checks which would be supplemented by regular follow-up independent inspections

But Ben Priestley, of public service sector union UNISON, told the BBC Radio 4 Farming Today programme this could put consumers at risk.

He claimed the deregulated system had not worked in the USA, and where inspections were privatised in the UK poultry in 1994 standards fell.

“Since then there has been a huge decline in standards of hygiene and animals welfare in poultry meat plants,” claimed Mr Priestley.

“That is the system you will see in red meat abattoirs systems if these privatisation proposals go ahead.”

But FSA chief executive Geoffrey Podger rejected claims that there had been a fall in standards in the poultry sector since inspections were partly privatised.

He insisted changes in the red meat sector would still mean key enforcement tasks would remain independently enforced by inspectors.

“We want to see a modernised meat inspection system which actually gives additional consumer protection,” he told Farming Today.

Mr Podger suggested UNISON were afraid of change in the working environment.