§ Mr. DobbinTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has to alleviate the difficulties facing pig farmers. [96681]
§ Ms QuinWe are fully aware of the crisis facing the pig sector. We have made an additional £6 million in marketing and promotion aid available and it is our intention that this sector will benefit significantly from this money. I hope that this financial support will strengthen the sector's competitive position in the future and lead to better returns for pig producers.
Furthermore, my right hon. Friend the Minister has recently written to MPs and local authorities to emphasise the importance of sourcing pigmeat products to British standards. He has also made a formal request to the EU Commission to reopen the private storage aid scheme. We are tackling misleading labelling and are consulting on revised guidelines to Trading Standards Authorities. Ministers are committed to better auditing of claims on welfare and other standards of imported products. We will have meetings with retailers to insist that they reaffirm their commitments of last year on sourcing pigmeat to British standards. Similar meetings will take place with leading caterers. We will also be asking the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC) to consider whether the current ban on the use of porcine meat and bonemeal (MBM) is still justified.