Bone-in roasts suffer under 24-month rule
UK - The 24-month rule for the meat handling process is having a seriously disruptive impact on the pre-Christmas market, particularly the traditional supply of bone-in roasts, according to the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers (SAMW).SAMW also said that repeated calls to the Food Standards Agency (FSA) for help in developing a practical and workable approach to the current situation have been met by a "massive lack of urgency" on the FSA's part.
"The poor, confused and inconsistent implementation of this measure and the thoroughly inadequate level of communication which we've been offered has left us angry and frustrated at the way in which our members' businesses are been damaged at this crucial point in the year," said SAMW president Allan Jess.
The handling process involves the EU requirement for the vertebral column to be removed from carcases of beef cattle aged 24-30 months, a measure introduced in May this year during the restoration of British beef exports. Jess added that, for the 10 years prior to May, the removal age requirement on meat supplied, perfectly safely, to British consumers was 30 months. "Although the majority of member states support the 30-month dateline, the process of shifting EU legislation to that point is proving laborious. In fact, after original hopes that the issue would be corrected long before now, the latest timetable from Brussels suggests the matter will run well into 2007."
Source: MeatInfo.co.uk