HL Deb 01 July 1999 vol 603 c49WA
The Countess of Mar

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will require all meat and meat products imported into the United Kingdom to be labelled with the country of origin, including products which have been processed or repackaged in the United Kingdom; and, if not, why not. [HL3226]

Lord Donoughue

Food labelling rules only require country of origin labelling where it is needed to avoid misleading consumers. Since these rules are harmonised throughout the European Community any additional requirements for country of origin labelling for meat or meat products could only be introduced at European level. Retailers may, of course, provide country of origin information on a voluntary basis, provided what they give, is true and not likely to mislead the consumer.