UK food standards petition nears 1 million signatures

Written by Rachel Martin

A petition urging UK politicians to ensure any food imports meet British standards has garnered the support of almost one million people.

Just 10 days ago the petition had been signed by 50,000 people but at the time of publication, the figure had rocketed to more than 906,000.

The National Farmers’ Union’s food standards petition was launched in February, but saw a surge in support as celebrity chef Jamie Oliver announced signing the petition was “probably the most important thing [he has] ever done”.

The petition urges the government not to allow imports of food that would be illegal for British farmers to produce.

The NFU has also been running a targeted social media campaign to maximise the reach of the petition and encourage supporters to sign up to the NFU’s ongoing Back British Farming campaign.

While the Mail on Sunday has also launched its own ‘Save our Family Farms’ campaign in response.

NFU president Minette Batters said: “We are now at the eleventh hour. Winning this battle in the court of public opinion is where this now lies.

I believe the UK Government should seize the opportunities of ‘Global Britain’ to promote sustainable models of production and consumption across the world.

“Farming throughout the UK has high standards of safety and welfare with an ambition to be net-zero in greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.

There are very strict controls on farming methods allowed in the UK and I expect the same of all food which is imported here so the food I eat is as safe, traceable and produced to high welfare and environmental standards.

“Before the UK begins to negotiate trade deals with countries around the world, I call on the UK Government to put into law rules that prevent food being imported to the UK which is produced in ways that would be illegal here”.

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