§ Andrew GeorgeTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps her Department has taken to ensure that labelling of potatoes in shops and supermarkets indicates the type of potato. [136357]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonI have been asked to reply.
The Food Labelling Regulations 1996 (as amended) require potatoes sold in shops and supermarkets to be labelled with the potato variety. Enforcement of these labelling requirements is the responsibility of local authorities. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has funded the development of a robust DNA method to check whether potato variety information is accurate. In a United Kingdom-wide survey published in October, the FSA found that 96 out of 294 (33 per cent.) samples were not labelled correctly. These results have been passed to the relevant local authorities, which are taking appropriate action.