To think it should be clearer?

[xkatie27x]

So I only eat British meat - I wouldn't be rude enough to refuse to eat a meal if it was made with non British meat, but I personally would only buy British meat. Reasons include I want to support our farmers, i think it's better quality and I just don't want to buy something that's been imported when I could get it from mr farmer down the road etc. I also prefer to shop local if I can help it so boyfriend and I decided to try the butchers down the road (normally I'll get meat from greatbritishmeatcompany). He went in the day before to have a look and specifically asked the butchers where their chicken was from and he said Dorset. We went in today and bought 5kg for £25 as that was the advertised deal. Got home and checked the pack which said slaughtered and packaged in Poland.

AIBU to assume that all the chicken was from the UK? I never thought that the meat in the deal might have been from elsewhere. I've still supported a local business so will eat it on this occasion but should I mention something to them? its definitely not as good quality as what I would normally get and only a few £ cheaper!

[Oldraver]

I buy sauasages and bacon that is grown organically on a farm 20 minutes away. It is slaughtered in Germany for some reason

[Oldraver]

Grown organically FFS...well you know

[LordEmsworth]

Can anyone say definitively whether or not chickens from Britain are ever sent to Poland/another country to be slaughtered?

There are laws about labelling, which state that you can only call meat British if it was raised and slaughtered in Britain. If it was reared in one country and slaughtered in another, you cannot call it British - the label has to specify country it was reared in, and also which country it was slaughtered in.

If animals weren't sometimes slaughtered in a country different to the one they were reared in, that wouldn't be needed.

Recent-ish changes to the law

News story, admittedly an old one, but which is about transporting abroad for slaughter

£4.4 million of animals exported from UK in 2015 for fattening or slaughter overseas

Sometimes it will be more economical to send the animals abroad to a processing factory, who may then sell the meat to an export/importer, who imports it back to the UK. I don't know why people are saying it would never happen, unless it's because it sounds ridiculous (I agree, it does sound ridiculous and crazy and unethical - I am not saying it's right, only that it happens!)

[WellErrr]

Basic logic fail. IF the chicken was born and reared in Dorset, and shipped to Poland for slaughtering and packaging, of course it is British meat. It didn't do a citizenship test in Polish on the way to get its neck wrung, did it?

FFS.

Basic

Basic knowledge fail. IF the chicken was born and reared in Dorset, and shipped to Poland for slaughtering and packaging, of course it is NOT allowed to be labelled British meat.

FFS.

I buy sauasages and bacon that is grown organically on a farm 20 minutes away. It is slaughtered in Germany for some reason

You do this knowingly? That's disgraceful.
Read up on live export before you decide to support it.

[WellErrr]

Quite aggressive, aren't you? Should have stuck to my 'don't engage with people who can't even be arsed to think of a username' rule, but now I've started, I'll finish.

When you're asking about the provenance of food in a butchers, and the butcher tells you it is from a place IN BRITAIN, it is fair for the OP to assume that he means the meat is British. This isn't a lay person she's speaking to; he knows exactly what the question meant.

By saying 'Dorset' but actually meaning 'Poland,' he has misled her. Meat slaughtered in Poland is not British meat. The butcher would understand this. As do I, seeing as I work in the industry.

You don't.

No need to be rude though, just chill out. You might even learn something

[VerySadInside]

I buy sauasages and bacon that is grown organically on a farm 20 minutes away. It is slaughtered in Germany for some reason

Thats awful! Why would you buy the meat knowing that. Livestock is not transported at all nicely when going for slaughter. The stress can ruin the flavour of the meat as well.

[user1493022461]

He didn't mean Poland, he meant Dorset.
Are ye not following?

[CaulkheadNorth]

just because the meat was from
Dorset on Friday doesn't mean that the meat for sale on Saturday isn't from Poland. Butchers get deliveries a lot.

[WellErrr]

If the meat was from Poland, even if it passed through Dorset en route, he should have said Poland. That is the question the OP was asking. The butcher would have known that. He misled her, presumably to get a sale.

I don't think YOU'RE following.

[CrazedZombie]

Very imformative!

Chicken born and slaughtered in Poland then exported to Dorset = chicken from Dorset.

Chicken born in Dorset, slaughtered in Poland, exported to Dorset = chicken from Dorset

Chicken born, slaughtered and sold in Dorset = British chicken.

I think that some people abvu to not understand why a typical person would not realize why chicken from Dorset doesn't mean British meat. Dorset is in Britain but obviously British in this case is like a brand and offers the guarantee of born, slaughtered and packaged in UK.

[AuntieMay]

Chicken has 8 hrs from its last food/ water before by uk law it has to have been slaughtered. In that time it also has to be caught, loaded and transported to the slaughter house - highly unlikely anyone can do all that plus drive the chickens to Poland to slaughter them! Obviously it would be completely financially unviable to fly them!

The butcher lied about the provenance of the chicken
Use a better butchers..

[PyongyangKipperbang]

I agree that there is room for confusion.

You ask the butcher where is the chicken from and he says Dorset which could mean that thats where his supplier of Polish chicken is based or that it is Dorset chicken that was slaughtered and packed in Poland

Without confirmation of what he meant then it could very well be that the chicken came to him via Dorset but is not in fact British chicken.

[MovingOnUpMovingOnOut]

Did a poster just call another a donkey?!

[WellErrr]

Yes Moving

[Badbadbunny]

It never even occurred to me that eggs were imported given the sheer number of chicken farms in the UK. But food factories import them in huge numbers from abroad, particularly the far east, and they're usually already boiled and shelled before they're dispatched here. Same with chicken which is often cooked, sliced/cubed before dispatch. The idea is that it's delivered ready to process in the UK factory.

[Oldraver]

Thats awful! Why would you buy the meat knowing that. Livestock is not transported at all nicely when going for slaughter. The stress can ruin the flavour of the meat as well.

I have looked at the website and made a mistake. The meat is slaughtered locally but some of it goes to Germany for processing...which I thought rather odd

[user1493022461]

If the meat was from Poland, even if it passed through Dorset en route, he should have said Poland. That is the question the OP was asking

Ah come on petal, keep up. IT's from Dorset, not Poland.

[WellErrr]

Then why the 'slaughtered and packaged in Poland' sticker?

You're proof that the 'user2683' posters are mainly goady fuckers though, nice one

[Want2bSupermum]

This is why usda requires an origin and processing stamp on all food. Saves the confusion.

I totally do not understand the premise that British farming standards are better than other countries such as Scandinavian ones.

[user1493022461]

Cos it was slaughtered and packaged in Polad, duh. And reared in Dorset.

Honestly, its not hard. Are you quite alright ?

[WellErrr]

How do you know it was reared in Dorset?

[PyongyangKipperbang]

But the point is that no one actually knows if it was reared in Dorset, duh.

All anyone knows is that the butcher said it came from Dorset and has a Polish origin info sticker on it. Which could mean either a) it is Dorset reared and was merely slaughtered and prepared in Poland. b) it is Polish chicken that the butcher got from his supplier in Dorset or c) the butcher just lied when it was clear that OP probably wouldnt have bought it if it wasnt British, as generally people dont ask unless something like that is important to them.

Are you quite alright if you cannot understand that simple premise?

[QuinionsRainbow]

Perhaps the chicken was hatched, raised and despatched in Poland, exported frozen or chilled to a wholesaler in Dorset, England, from where it was bought by the butcher. In his eyes, it came from Dorset.

[Want2bSupermum]

The butcher is was dishonest and I would walk in and tell them. I'm funny about stuff like that though.

Best place to get meat according to DH (who is in the meat industry) is Costco or Walmart. Both have strict animal welfare rules that are more onerous than the rules in the U.K. As an example, to be antibiotic free on the label, both retailers require that the animal has never had antibiotics.

Costco has a maximum distance to slaughter. DH got a contract with them and won it because they were able to get all animals to the slaughterhouse within 4 house plus of course they require certain procedures during the process to ensure the animals are not distressed.

Costco do random surprise checks to make sure farmers are following their guidelines. If you don't pass their check everything is pulled from the shelves at the cost of the supplier and they cancel the order.