§ Mr. KilfoyleTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of(a) the amount of beef held in cold stores under European Union intervention rules, (b) the amount of that beef which is from animals fed pre-1989 protein feed and (c) the amount of intervention beef which has been distributed to the most needy in the United Kingdom in each year since 1989. [23154]
§ Mr. BaldryThe answers to these questions are as follows
340W(a) As at the end of February, the latest date for which EU figures are currently available, beef held in cold stores under EU intervention rules totalled, 5,458 tonnes.(b) Exact information on the amount of beef currently held in intervention stores derived from animals fed pre-1989 ruminant protein feed is not available. In the UK, however, the figure is likely to be negligible on the basis that upwards of 99 per cent. of the animals in question would have been born after 1989, and the majority of those born before that date would have been finished on grass.(c) The amount of beef taken from intervention for distribution to the most needy in the United Kingdom in each year since 1989 is shown in the table. The greater part of this was processed into canned beef for distribution.
Year Beef (tonnes) taken from intervention for distribution to the needy in the UK 1989 2,975 1990 3,000 1991 3,000 1992 2,965 1993 6,200 1994 6,480 1995 7,700