Brussels, 25/10/2013 (Agence Europe) - Next week, the European Commission will be putting the possibility of compulsory meat labelling on pre-prepared dishes to member states.
After the horsemeat scandal (when lasagne containing horse meat was marked as beef), the Commission promised to speed up publication of a long-awaited report in order to assess the possibilities for taking forward meat labelling legislation. The results of the Commission's analysis show that compulsory labelling to show the country of origin of the meat could increase production costs by as much as 15-50% for the sector, with an additional administrative burden of up to 12% and official inspections 10-30% more costly. Some 90% of those additional costs would probably be passed on to the consumer, the Commission states. The mention of EU or non-EU origin would be more feasible - with additional charges ranging from a negligible amount to 25%.
The Commission is expected to suggest in its report three possible options for the labelling of processed meat-based products. The first would allow producers and distributors of meat-based processed products to mention the origin of the meat used voluntarily. Some frozen food producers in France already specify on their labels that the meat used is 100% French. The second option would introduce the obligation of a label showing the origin of the meat, in the same way as is done for honey, for example. The label would thus specify the percentage of meat from the EU and the percentage from non-EU countries. The third option would be an obligation to show the origin of the meat on the label.
France has called on the European Union to ensure traceability and transparency on the origin of meat. Several countries however (the United Kingdom, Germany, the Czech Republic, Denmark), have expressed reservations about the effectiveness of such a measure. Commissioner Tonio Borg met Agnès Le Brun (EPP, France) in Strasbourg on Tuesday 22 October to discuss the report. In a press release published after the meeting, the French MEP expressed scepticism about the commissioner's true intentions, saying (our translation throughout): “To say that labelling will entail a rise in prices, something that is already challenged by several consumer associations, is an argument that mainly allows the Commission to abdicate its responsibility so as not to take legislative proposals forward at this point”. By not using his powers that allow him to make a legislative proposal in order to make progress on this issue, “the commissioner is clouding the issue in the eyes of the European consumers on his intentions to act in favour of consumer information, and is sacrificing the transparency due to consumers on the altar of liberal orthodoxy”, she deplored.
Fresh meat. As is already the case with fresh beef, the European Commission must adopt a provision by the end of the year on labelling to show the origin of pigmeat, poultry meat, sheep and goat meat. The place of birth of the animal would not be mentioned, only the place where the animal is reared and slaughtered. (LC/transl.jl)