§ Mr. ChopeTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) if the use of recovered vegetable oil for producing animal feed is to be banned in the UK; and if she will make a statement; [28696]
(2) what regulatory impact assessment has been carried out in respect of the EU Animal By-Products regulation; [28695]
(3) if she will make a statement on the impact of restrictions on the use of recovered vegetable oil upon waste disposal authorities; [28697]
(4) if she will make a statement on the implementation of the EU Animal By-Products regulation. [28694]
797W
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 18 January 2002]: The proposed EU Animal By-Products Regulation would ban the feeding of catering waste to livestock. This ban was introduced at a late stage in negotiations and, after political agreement to a common position had been reached, the European commission made it clear that it considered that the ban also applied to used cooking oils. The Government consider that used cooking oils can be safely used in livestock feed if they are protected from contamination by the application of HACCP (Hazard Analysis of Critical Control Points) principles and appropriate quality control. If suitable alternative outlets are not in place, a ban could lead to environmental problems. The UK is therefore opposing the ban on used cooking oils which are subject to suitable controls and has been lobbying Members of the European Parliament to make suitable changes at Second Reading. The UK has also made it clear that, in the event of the ban not being reversed, an extended transitional period would be needed to allow time for alternative, sustainable outlets to be developed.
Regulatory impact assessments were placed in the Library of the House on 27 November 2000 and 26 February 2001, along with explanatory memoranda on the regulation (reference 12646/00 and 12648/00). However, as the ban on catering waste had not then been proposed, they did not take account of the costs of such a ban. A revised regulatory impact assessment and a further supplementary explanatory memorandum are in preparation. We expect the Animal By-Products Regulation to come into force in member states towards the end of 2002. Relevant industries and other interests will be fully consulted on its implementation.