Roger Perry
Member
Really touched a nerve, hope it works' out for you guys'
House of Lords votes to ban lower standard food imports
- Thread starter jackrussell101
- Start date
Really touched a nerve, hope it works' out for you guys'
ollie989898
Member
No, don't you worry, I'm not bothered at all, I was just asking the question because irony.
.... especially that dreadful woman, Truss.
Well dang ...
If this doesn’t bring them damn yankees to heel nothing will
- Location
- Lincolnshire
I don’t know so much. Most I have met are fairly pragmatic and down to Earth about the balance between standards and affordability. In Western Europe we seem to have the view that we can grow everything organically to a very high standard and expect the masses to pay through the nose for it.
well your see Roger we live in this “ quality assured world” here where as long as the forms are filled in and it’s rubber stamped then everybody believes that all our products are perfect. Well I know my produce isn’t perfect, I’ll be honest about it. Some of my wheat has been so battered by the weather that the quality is poor to say the least but in a pragmatic world which is disappearing now we’d say well we just have to suck it up and make best use we can of it. But these folk in the House of Lords they think that if you stamp your feet and create enough of a scene you can somehow force high quality produce out of our home producers every year at an affordable price using less and less pesticides as they do like banning them year on year.
It’s all part of the fairly tale world we live in in Western Europe. No pragmatism, no can do attitude. Soon we won’t be able to find any food at all that meets our own standards. What will we do then?
This is going to be the loop hole.
Who says American (or South American or Canadian or Australian....) are lower standards.
Different standards yes. Lower.... well that’s the debate.
It’d be more correct to say the Lords are voting against imports that allow practices not currently allowed within the UK. It’s a matter of those legalities making the playing field more even. Not much at all to do with high or low standards.
- Location
- Lincolnshire
So should we be importing machinery or vehicles from countries paying people who live in tin shacks 52p per hour?
As said, its a two way street, and unilateral one sided bans won't get us far.
Anyway, why not let the customer decide? Ban on imported N anyone?
As said, its a two way street, and unilateral one sided bans won't get us far.
Anyway, why not let the customer decide? Ban on imported N anyone?
ollie989898
Member
The fact is trading with countries who have lower labour rates is still beneficial for them economically.
Well, she might appeal to The Donald, but to be honest, she doesn't look like his usual "type"!!
kiwi pom
Member
- Location
- canterbury NZ
Ok ignore chlorine washed chicken and hormone beef for a minute. What else wouldn't get in?
- Location
- Lincolnshire
The fact is trading with countries who have lower standards of any kind is beneficial to them economically.
- Location
- Lincolnshire
That all depends on your particular outlook on life. It could be a huge list of stuff or not much at all. What about clothing? Should we be letting clothing in that's made by kids in sweatshops abroad? While we keep buying such products we effectively perpetuate poor working conditions. If we said we aren't buying anything until you pay them min wage and have same H and S as our workers we would be applying the same standards to imported as home made products. Depends on who is in charge and whose interests are threatened though doesnt it?
My view is let it run freely. Let the customer decide. I don't want somebody slapping restrictions on products we export in a tit for tat escalation because we have slapped restrictions on the importation of their produce. Its a downward spiral or trade war if you like. Why discriminate particularly against the US? We already import loads of stuff from other countries with far lower standards than our own.
- Location
- Lincolnshire
What precisely is wrong with chlorinated chicken anyway?
- Location
- Scottish Highlands
It’s not that it’s been washed in chlorinated water that’s the problem, but that it needed to be washed in it. The problem stems from lower standards of cleanliness and care during the whole production process, which they then try to compensate for by giving the meat a chlorine wash during packaging. Not always successfully either, given the higher prevalence of food poisoning in the US.
Chlorine should only be used in restaurants to sanitize dishes and utensils, not food?
It, or fluoride, should only be added to water.
And on and on.
Wash your hands for 20 seconds and use hand sanitizer every time you enter a store, but don’t wash your chicken!
kiwi pom
Member
- Location
- canterbury NZ
Are there lower standards of cleanliness and care?
I've no idea, just wondering what is different?
- Location
- Scottish Highlands
I couldn’t comment on specifics, but that’s my understanding of the situation.
ollie989898
Member
You have it correct largely.
It is still legal to wash salad (and fruit, IIRC) with dilute chlorine solutions in the UK but there are restrictions on how it is done. I understand the foodstuffs so treated must not contain residues higher than concentrations that would be legal within UK water supplies.
UK food safety laws are understandably strict and people like environmental health are known for not having a sense of humour at all.
If you ask me, given my experience of the food chain from start to finish, I would say the place where the greatest risk to consumers is where it is processed or finally cooked rather than at the primary production end if that makes sense. However, I do understand why the regulations applying to slaughter houses and the like are so strict.
From a food safety point of view, my gut feel is that chlorinated chicken probably presents no health risk to consumers. I do not know what practices are used in Brazilian or Thai poultry products though. Of course, the actual solution is to spurn the consumption of poultry because most of it is carp anyway.
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ollie989898
Member
Yes, it is still of economic benefit to them but as countries become wealthier, their people expect more money and an improvement in their wages and living standards. Of course the UK should not allow the sale of products made using child labour but it should not bar the importation of a product merely because the people who assembled it or produced it were paid what constitutes a terrible wage by UK standards. Similarly, products which are unsafe for children should be banned from sale. In this instance, the consumer can choose to find one with the usual trade or kitemarks. Of course, one can choose to buy an appropriately labelled ethical brand if they wish also.
International trade lifts entire nations out of poverty and it is important that this happens. I would sooner the UK spend some money with foreign countries than throw aid money at them perpetually.
- Location
- Lincolnshire
If we do ban food imports of "lower standards" products (whatever that means) then does it occur to people that we might have to exclude half of the stuff we already import? Who is going to police it and who has the final say on what is or isn't acceptable in their very subjective opinion.
Its a naive, half baked and unworkable crock of a proposal IMO, but something you'd entirely expect from the Lords.
Its a naive, half baked and unworkable crock of a proposal IMO, but something you'd entirely expect from the Lords.