§ Mr. EtheringtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many broiler chickens slaughtered in the United Kingdom were rejected as unfit for human consumption in 1999. [150184]
§ Ms StuartI am informed by the Food Standards Agency that responsibility for the enforcement of meat hygiene legislation in licensed poultry slaughterhouses in Great Britain rests with the Meat Hygiene Service (MHS), and in Northern Ireland with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Information relating to Great Britain is not available in the form requested as MHS data are based on cause of condemnation rather than whether the carcase was partially or fully condemned. However, it is estimated that in 1999, approximately 6.6 million whole carcases from poultry weighing under 2kg (a category that includes broiler chickens, cast hen and other poultry) were condemned as unfit for hum in consumption post-slaughter. This represents approximately 1 per cent. of the total throughput of poultry weighing under 2kg slaughtered in Great Britain during that period.
In Northern Ireland, 62.3 million broiler chickens were slaughtered during, 1999, of which 0.6 million were subsequently rejected as unfit for human consumption.