§ Mr. GrayTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement about the labelling of country of origin of meat sold in Britain. [74694]
§ Mr. RookerRules on the labelling of food products are harmonised by EC legislation. Generally, the place (but not necessarily the country) of origin of any food must be given if omitting it could mislead the purchaser about the true place of origin of that food. The place of origin may be taken as the place in which the food last underwent a substantial change.
More specifically, the Beef Labelling Scheme requires that any beef labelled with country of origin information must derive from animals born, reared and slaughtered in that country. National origin labelling of beef is expected to become compulsory from the year 2000. The labels on pre-packaged poultrymeat must give an indication of its country of origin when it is imported from outside the Community and we are currently taking steps to require this information on labels, tickets or notices near where unpackaged poultry is offered for sale.
Separately, in November last year, members of the British Retail Consortium gave a voluntary undertaking not to sell imported fresh meat, processed or packaged in the UK, under a British label. This is a welcome commitment, for UK producers and consumers alike.