22 March 2010

2 minute read

Europe

MEP’s voted 33-29 in favour for country of origin labelling to be a requirement on meat, poultry, dairy products, fresh fruit, vegetables and other single-ingredient products.

They also backed an amendment to food information regulations which would require place of provenance to be displayed for meat, poultry and fish when used as an ingredient in processed foods.

The changes could mean that for meat and poultry, the country of origin or place of provenance may be given as a single place for animals only where the animals have been born, reared and slaughtered in the same country or place.

In other cases information on each of the different places of birth, rearing and slaughter should be given.

Their report will now go forward to for a full parliamentary vote, probably in May/June 2010.

Ulster Farmers Union President Graham Furey said: “This is positive news and would be a great opportunity to boost consumer transparency through clear labelling. Consumers have a right to make an informed purchasing decision.

"Currently products can be labelled with a local origin simply because they were processed here. Without definitive origin labelling, consumers make assumptions based on brand or advertising, yet the raw ingredient may have been imported from the other side of the world, from countries that do not produce to the same high quality and safety standards as UK producers.

"The entire supply chain from Farmers to Consumers deserves a properly functioning food chain that operates fairly, transparently and sustainably. I hope the European Parliament will vote unanimously in favour of this amendment”.

TheCattleSite News Desk