This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/uk_politics/7891695.stm
The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Previous version
1
Next version
Version 0 | Version 1 |
---|---|
Tories want 'honest' food labels | Tories want 'honest' food labels |
(about 17 hours later) | |
Only meat "born and bred" in Britain should carry "British" labels, the Conservatives have said. | |
Under current rules, meat from animals farmed in other countries processed in the UK can be packaged as British. | Under current rules, meat from animals farmed in other countries processed in the UK can be packaged as British. |
The Tories say this is "misleading", and have enlisted the support of celebrity chefs and charities. | The Tories say this is "misleading", and have enlisted the support of celebrity chefs and charities. |
Shadow environment secretary Nick Herbert told the National Farmers Union (NFU) there was a need to bring in more "honest" food labelling. | |
The Conservatives want to introduce a bill demanding compulsory country-of-origin details on packaging, which would require products carrying the UK flag to be born, reared and processed in Britain. | |
Mr Herbert said: "For a decade Defra (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) has promised to clamp down on misleading information, and leading supermarkets gave a commitment in a voluntary code that they would not sell imported meat processed in the UK under a British label. Yet poor labelling persists. | |
"People have a right to know where their food comes from. Meat labelled British should be born and bred in Britain, raised to our high welfare standards." | "People have a right to know where their food comes from. Meat labelled British should be born and bred in Britain, raised to our high welfare standards." |
Consumers have a right to know where their food comes from and what's in it Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall He denied it was a campaign to put British producers first. | Consumers have a right to know where their food comes from and what's in it Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall He denied it was a campaign to put British producers first. |
"Clear labelling will empower consumers, not restrict their options. | "Clear labelling will empower consumers, not restrict their options. |
"Other EU countries fight for the interests of their consumers and their farming industry within the trading rules. It's time for the British government to show the same spine." | "Other EU countries fight for the interests of their consumers and their farming industry within the trading rules. It's time for the British government to show the same spine." |
The campaign is supported by a number of bodies including the NFU and the RSPCA, and comes after an ICM poll commissioned by the Tories found 87% of people supported country of origin labelling. | The campaign is supported by a number of bodies including the NFU and the RSPCA, and comes after an ICM poll commissioned by the Tories found 87% of people supported country of origin labelling. |
TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall said the labelling would help protect consumers. | |
He said: "Consumers have a right to know where their food comes from and what's in it. | He said: "Consumers have a right to know where their food comes from and what's in it. |
"Any policy, whether it's pursued by our government or our retailers, that stands in the way of that is wrong and must be fought." | "Any policy, whether it's pursued by our government or our retailers, that stands in the way of that is wrong and must be fought." |
Previous version
1
Next version