Poultry bosses have told European officials that chilled poultry meat should not be labelled as fresh if it is more than two weeks old.
The move is a bid to head off competition from South American poultry meat, which is likely to become more intense with the EU poised to relax trade barriers.
At present, EU rules state that poultry meat should be kept within a temperature range of -2C and +4C if it is to be considered ‘fresh’.
However, as long as the meat remains wholesome, it can be stored in such conditions for an indefinite period of time.
Producers here and on the continent are concerned that South American meat that has
been sitting on a ship for weeks in controlled conditions could be sold as fresh alongside domestically produced meat that is just a few days old.
British Poultry Council chief executive Peter Bradnock said: “Technical advances mean it is feasible to present a product that remains within the legal definition of fresh but which has taken longer to get to the consumer than the bird would have been alive for. AVEC, the European poultry industry body, has agreed a position among members that fresh poultry meat should be held in the right temperature conditions, but that its age should be a maximum of slaughter date plus 14 days.”
AVEC’s submission extends to poultry preparations - raw products with added ingredients - and cooked meats.
Bradnock said: “The feeling is that consumer perception will be that a preparation sold uncooked and in an unfrozen state would be made from fresh poultry meat. We are saying that any product made from meat that has been frozen at any time should be sold frozen.
“Also, if a meat has been cooked and then frozen at any time, it should not go on to be sold in an unfrozen state.”
Richard Clarke
The move is a bid to head off competition from South American poultry meat, which is likely to become more intense with the EU poised to relax trade barriers.
At present, EU rules state that poultry meat should be kept within a temperature range of -2C and +4C if it is to be considered ‘fresh’.
However, as long as the meat remains wholesome, it can be stored in such conditions for an indefinite period of time.
Producers here and on the continent are concerned that South American meat that has
been sitting on a ship for weeks in controlled conditions could be sold as fresh alongside domestically produced meat that is just a few days old.
British Poultry Council chief executive Peter Bradnock said: “Technical advances mean it is feasible to present a product that remains within the legal definition of fresh but which has taken longer to get to the consumer than the bird would have been alive for. AVEC, the European poultry industry body, has agreed a position among members that fresh poultry meat should be held in the right temperature conditions, but that its age should be a maximum of slaughter date plus 14 days.”
AVEC’s submission extends to poultry preparations - raw products with added ingredients - and cooked meats.
Bradnock said: “The feeling is that consumer perception will be that a preparation sold uncooked and in an unfrozen state would be made from fresh poultry meat. We are saying that any product made from meat that has been frozen at any time should be sold frozen.
“Also, if a meat has been cooked and then frozen at any time, it should not go on to be sold in an unfrozen state.”
Richard Clarke
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