UK pig industry tackles EU non-compliance
The National Pig Association (NPA) said 60% of EU countries are still not compliant with the ban, which they have had a decade to prepare for, and that it is vital that this illegal pork does not enter the UK. The
NPA and the Secretary of State for Environment, Owen Paterson, have stated that non-compliance is completely unacceptable and that illegal products should not be sold to “unsuspecting” British consumers. The NPA has previously launched a ‘Wall of Fame’ for compliant companies, in which the signatories pledge that all the pork they sell is from compliant farms.
NPA regions manager Lizzie Press said: “We believe British food companies that have made the pledge on our Wall of Fame have conscientiously done what we asked of them, by gaining commitments from their suppliers that only pork from legal farms has been used. But now we want to test those statements by tracing randomly selected packs back to their farms of origin.”
Two of Asda’s pork suppliers in the Netherlands have already received visits from the NPA, and both were found to be compliant with the new regulations. Press said she was satisfied with the farm standards observed.
This week, the NPA will be sending out letters to a random selection of companies on the Wall of Fame which supply imported products, asking for full traceability to confirm the products are legal.
“I am sure the companies that have signed our Wall of Fame are as keen as we are to assure their customers of the traceability of the pork and pork products they import, particularly following the recent horsemeat scandal which has shaken consumers’ faith in the food chain,” said Press.
