Cutting plants and cold stores review announced
An industry-wide review of meat cutting premises and cold stores is set to be undertaken by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland, in the wake of non-compliance issues identified at cutting plants operated by 2 Sisters Food Group and Russell Hume.
The review will be established later this month and the results will be fully available to the public.
Heather Hancock, chairman of the Food Standards Agency and Ross Finnie chair of Food Standards Scotland, jointly commented: “In the last six months the FSA and FSS have faced two serious incidents involving major players in the meat sector.
“People rightly expect food businesses to keep to the rules, rules designed to keep consumers safe and to sustain public trust in food – and food businesses have a duty to follow the regulations.
“In the light of these recent incidents, the FSA and FSS will be taking forward reviews of cutting plants and cold stores used for meat.”
The agencies’ investigation continues and the areas of interest include the extended use of use by dates, as well as the food safety management system that the business has in place.
Jason Feeney, chief executive of the FSA, noted: “Our investigation into the major non-compliances we found at the Russell Hume plants in England and Scotland is intensifying.
“We have already stopped these plants producing meat products, have ensured the withdrawal and disposal of the products and now we are looking at the root cause of the incident and any culpability. The investigation is looking into all aspects of the business to establish more details about the serious and widespread problems that we identified.
“It remains the case that there is no indication that people have become ill from eating meat supplied by Russell Hume and we continue to assess the situation working with the relevant public health bodies.”
AIMS reaction
Commenting on the review, Norman Bagley, head of policy at the Association of Independent Meat Suppliers, stated: “The Association of Independent Meat Suppliers, whilst welcoming the FSA’s statement in light of recent events at both 2 Sisters and Russell Hume, are unsure exactly what a “review” of cutting plants and cold stores means.
Norman Bagley.
“If they are talking about official FSA controls at these factories then they should say so. We know that there are large amounts of FSA staff in slaughterhouses on a daily basis, with vets and meat inspectors checking each and every animal and bird that has been slaughtered, where the risks are low.
“The independent catering butcher and cutting sector has thrived over the last few years by differentiating itself from these alleged 2 Sisters and Russell Hume activities with huge success, so clearly controls should be where the greatest risk is in the food chain. We hope they will look at where in the chain any official controls should be, whether they are looking at the right things and at the right frequency, and who is best suited to do these controls.”
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