Consumers could be eating “dirty” chlorinated turkey at Christmas if the UK agrees a post-Brexit trade deal with the USA, according to a new briefing paper by leading food policy experts.
The team – from the University of Sussex, Cardiff University and City, University of London – found US poultry, washed in up to four chemical disinfectants, does not meet EU safety standards. The academics also found the chemicals are used in the USA to wash fruit, vegetables and fish.
They warn that British shoppers would be safer if the UK kept European Union standards and say future controls should be “stricter, not weaker”.
Professors Erik Millstone (University of Sussex), Tim Lang (City, University of London) and Terry Marsden (Cardiff University) compared current UK and EU standards with those in the USA, and concluded that the use of chemical disinfectants by the US food industry posed risks to consumers and workers in the industry.
The briefing paper Will the British public accept chlorine-washed turkey for Christmas dinner, after Brexit? is available at https://foodresearch.org.uk/food-brexit-chlorine-washed-turkey-for-christmas/
