§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if, in order to reduce the risk of listeria, he will take steps to introduce legislation to ensure that the permitted length of refrigeration of cooked food is limited to the shortest possible time.
§ Mr. Kenneth Clarke[holding answer 13 February 1989]: The length of time for which cooked products may be kept depends on a number of things such as the type of cooking process, packaging, preservatives etc. It is not possible to lay down one single period of shelf life which would be appropriate for all these products.