Brussels, 09/02/2015 (Agence Europe) - In Strasbourg on Wednesday 11 February, MEPs will reach a position on the option of indicating the country of the meat used as an ingredient in processed foods in a meat derived products label. The European Consumer Union (BEUC) said that this provided the European Parliament with a “golden opportunity” to call for compulsory labels for meat origin, which would benefit both transparency for consumers as well as the economy. On Monday 9 February, BEUC said that support from Parliament at the plenary would clearly indicate to the Commission that there is a need to introduce legislation to prevent “unfortunate incidents” occurring, such as the horsemeat sold as beef in lasagne scandal.
The European Consumer Organisation is therefore calling on the EP to take ownership of its Environment, Public Health & Safety Committee's position of last month, which called for compulsory labelling of meat origin in ready-made meals (see EUROPE 11236). Monique Goyens, BEUC's director general, explained, “If the European Parliament is looking for a way to restore consumers' trust in their food and drive the market forward, making origin info mandatory for processed meat is one important way to proceed. It means food manufacturers will have a clearer overview of what ends up on our plates”. She added that “Consumers have a keen interest in the source of their food, even more so when it comes to meat. 9 out of 10 want to know the origin of the meat in their burger or ham. While fresh meat origin will be displayed, we see no good reason why it becomes mysterious once meat goes through the mincer”.
The resolution that Parliament will adopt follows an oral question from Giovanni La Via, the chairperson of the Parliamentary committee, who is expected to put the question to the European Commission on Monday evening. (Aminata Niang)