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To: Government

Stop Government from lowering our food standards

Please do not allow our food standards to drop by allowing chlorinated chickens or Beef filled with hormones from other countries.

Why is this important?

The government has repeatedly vowed not to allow the import of chlorinated chicken and hormone-treated beef, but has refused to sign those pledges into law.

The House of Lords put forward amendments to the trade bill that would have required future trade agreements to be scrutinised by parliament, with a view to ensuring standards are retained, but the key amendment fell on Tuesday night by 353 votes to 277.

Campaigners said the new post-Brexit arrangements for food imports and food production standards in the UK would allow ministers to make sweeping changes to existing food safety regulations without consultation.

Many products could be affected. For instance, while the government has said it will not allow chlorinated chicken, meat can be washed in a variety of other substances that have similar effects: peracetic acid, cetylpyridinium chloride, acidified sodium chlorite, or organic acid rinses.

Chicken treated with bleach and similar substances can retain some pathogens, according to research, and campaigners also fear that such treatment is used to disguise infections caused by animals being kept in poor conditions that would be illegal in this country.
Did you know?
Around 60 billion chickens are reared for meat each year. 40 billion of these are raised in huge, crowded sheds, or cramped cages. They are kept in dismal conditions and suffer painful heart, skin, lung and bone problems and stress.
Chicken is one of the world’s most popular meats. Between 1996-2016, demand for chicken meat grew almost 40% in the European Union, 89% in China and 183% in India.
A factory-farmed chicken lives an average of 42 days. In the wild, chickens can live for several years.
Many factory-grown chickens gain more than 50g in weight every day. However, their immune systems, organs and legs cannot keep up, so they suffer a range of physical problems as a result.
Meat chickens are still babies when they’re slaughtered. Due to increased growth rate and shortened life span, chickens bred for meat may look fully-grown despite still being young.
Only specific breeds of chicken are bred for meat. They’re genetically selected for their ability to reach ‘slaughter weight’” as fast as possible.
Around 2,000 meat chickens are slaughtered every second around the world.
Many meat chickens live in a space smaller than an A4 piece of paper. By the time they’re ready for slaughter, there’s barely space for them to move.
Chickens love ‘dust-bathing’. They dig shallow holes to jump in, then cover themselves in dry dust and dirt. It’s an important natural behaviour, keeps feathers in good condition, and removes parasites. Factory-grown chickens are commonly prevented from dust-bathing and carrying out other important behaviours, such as pecking, scratching and perching.
71% of people never when ask where the chicken is from when buying it at a fast-food outlet. This insight came from our recent survey of 12,000 people.
The above facts were taken from Microsoft News, The Guardian and World Animal Protection.org website.

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Updates

2021-07-19 22:04:36 +0100

10 signatures reached