HC Deb 28 July 2000 vol 354 cc1127-8W
Mr. Grieve

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many tonnes of meat and bonemeal from cattle are being stored; and where such storage is taking place. [133156]

Ms Quin

[holding answer 27 July 2000]: There are currently some 460,000 tonnes of Over-30-Months scheme meat and bonemeal (MBM) in store at 15 sites in the UK; two in Devon, two in Lincolnshire, one on Merseyside, three in Lancashire, one in Cheshire, two in Scotland and four in Northern Ireland. There are 10,000 tonnes of Selective Cull Scheme MBM at one site in Shropshire.

Mr. Grieve

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in what conditions meat and bonemeal from cattle is being stored; and whether such storage is(a) in containers and (b) open in warehouses. [133154]

Ms Quin

[holding answer 27 July 2000]: Meat and bonemeal (MBM) produced from the rendering of carcases of cattle slaughtered under the Over-30-Month and Selective Cull schemes is stored in bulk heaps in warehouses. The storage is carried out safely and securely in compliance with waste management licensing legislation enforced by the Environment Agency, and its equivalent in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Mr. Grieve

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food for how long it is expected that meat and bonemeal from cattle will have to be stored pending its intended disposal through incineration; and when it is expected that all such material will have been incinerated. [133155]

Ms Quin

[holding answer 27 July 2000]: The Intervention Board has a target in its Service Delivery Agreement with the Treasury to incinerate 60 per cent. of Over-30-Months (OTMS) and Selective Cull Scheme meat and bonemeal (MBM) produced by March 2002. Recent forecasts indicate that the number of cattle entering the OTMS in future years, and the amount of MBM which will be produced as a result, will be greater than previously expected. Nevertheless, MBM stocks are expected to be at very low levels by March 2004, after which MBM will be incinerated as it is produced.

Mr. Grieve

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the practicability of disposing of meat and bonemeal from cattle by mixing it with lime and cement and depositing it in landfill sites. [133153]

Ms Quin

[holding answer 27 July 2000]: The Government have made no assessment of the practicability of this method of disposal of meat-and-bonemeal (MBM). Commission Regulation 716/96, under which the over-30-months scheme (OTMS) operates, requires these cattle to be directly incinerated or rendered and destroyed. Incineration with energy recovery remains the method of destruction preferred by both Government and the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee. The Intervention Board which operates the scheme has signed contracts with three companies for large-scale incineration facilities (subject to the companies obtaining the necessary consents) and these are expected to reduce stocks of OTMS MBM to very low levels by March 2004.