§ Baroness Byfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether inspection by the European Commission of French poultry slaughterhouses has found any improvement since the Commission's adverse reports in 1999. [HL3018]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath)We are advised on matters of food safety by the Food Standards Agency.
The European Commission's Food and Veterinary Office carried out a follow-up inspection mission to France in October 2000 to ascertain whether improvements had been made following a previous inspection mission in 1999 concerning the production of poultry meat. The report of the 2000 inspection mission concluded that there had been no significant improvements. It is the responsibility of the European Commission to ensure that member states fulfil their obligations under EU rules. Only poultry meat which has been produced in accordance with EU hygiene rules may be health marked and placed on the market within the European Union.