To ask if you will buy British meat rather than OZ/NZ with lower welfare standards?

[Mamaboo22]

Partly inspired by the farmer thread…

The Brexit trade deal with Australia has opened up tariff free trade for meat which can be produced to a lower animal welfare standard than employed by the UK system

Our UK farmers could be undercut by imports where poorer practices are employed

Will you support homegrown meat, UK farming and the standards they work to?

Ships sail both ways. If we want to export to Australia/NZ/long distance then they may as well fill the cargo holds on the ship's way back to Europe.

Lots of British meat is produced under pretty poor conditions so if I'm paying a premium for it the I want free range, grass fed (or the porcine equivalent).

i guess there will not be much choice if eating out

Will you support homegrown meat, UK farming and the standards they work to?

It's beneficial for everyone to buy locally produced food

It's all very well saying I only buy the finest meat from my local farm shop, but that is not the only meat I consume. I buy pre-packed sandwiches at work, I eat in restaurants, enjoy the odd pasty, even the odd dirty burger from a van or takeaway. That's how the chemicals and hormones I don't want to eat, and animals how have been kept in lower standards will get into my diet. Obviously that meat is lower quality that the stuff I'm buying and cooking myself at the moment, but at least there is a framework that ensures a basic decent standard. That's what this trade deal tosses in the bin.

@mustlovegin

Will you support homegrown meat, UK farming and the standards they work to?

It's beneficial for everyone to buy locally produced food

The UK hasn't produced enough for its own consumption for decades, even during WW2 we relied on USA imports, then followed years of rationing. Plus most people do not lead MC lives and have the money or means to go to a farm shop.

Buy British FB page has people complaining their are no UK apples or pears in our supermarkets!

I do believe in the next ten years, demand for meat will be at least halved as people become increasingly aware of farming / slaughter house practises that are inhumane on so many levels. Not to mention the environmental impact and health implications. Hopefully this will mean the decline of cattle farming / slaughter both here and in Australia. Can’t happen soon enough.

Yes. I always buy British meat, including chicken and I won't buy even a ready meal if it doesn't list the meat content as British.

This also means I won't buy takeaways with meat in, as I'm unsure of the provenance and only buy meat meals in restaurants if the meat is listed as British.

@mustlovegin

Will you support homegrown meat, UK farming and the standards they work to?

It's beneficial for everyone to buy locally produced food

Not if you're going to eat meat, as I mentioned in a previous post. Meat production in the UK results in a lot of carbon emissions as farming there is so intensive. The same is true of the EU.

I can't speak for Australia, but NZ produced meat results in vastly (like 75%) lower emissions due to this, be and this easily offsets the transport.

@Bloomsbury45

why hasn't the EU had a FTA with Australia?

They have been negotiating one since 2018. It is taking longer than the UK one because a deal with an entire bloc is more complicated. But also because the EU are in a stronger negotiating position and will be playing a longer, harder game. The Australians are also very experienced on trade negotiations and will have got a good deal from the UK.

No, it's because the EU regards Australia and NZ as a trading threat. Any deal between the EU and either country will probably have limited scope for this reason.

Plus any EU deal has to satisfy the interests of over 20 states with varying interests.

In contrast, the UK is much better placed to negotiate a deal that is mutually beneficial to both parties. Probably similar to the one that existed before 1972.

Does it? i thought UK meat is very low carbon footprint.

Whereas Southern hemp meat is carbon rich, mainly due to feed stuffs and water supply.

EU didn't neg a FTA deal because they don't see the point with a country that is facing to China/Asia... their nearest markets... basic trade rules... nearest markets are your most important & most profitable.

Funny how i can already buy Vegemite in Tescos....

I'll buy British as I always do however not everyone can afford to check origin first rather that price. There's certainly no shame in that .

@TomPinch

Any deal between the EU and either country will probably have limited scope for this reason

Neither the EU nor the Australian Government shares your view on this. So I would be interested to know what you base it on.

www.dfat.gov.au/trade/agreements/negotiations/aeufta/Pages/australia-european-union-fta-fact-sheet

ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/in-focus/eu-australia-trade-agreement/

I know someone who is a farmer and works in an umbrella organisation that sells meat to the supermarkets. He is obviously concerned about the growth of vegetarianism affecting his business. The supermarkets that all keep track of long term trends for planning purchasing were all in agreement that vegetarianism is not a short term trend but that it is a growing pattern of consumer behaviour. That's both good for animal welfare and good for the planet.

I only ever buy British meat so nothing will change

We don’t eat a lot of meat so when we do it’s from our local farm shop and I know exactly where it has come from.
I appreciate it’s not an option for everyone though

[quote Bloomsbury45]@TomPinch

Any deal between the EU and either country will probably have limited scope for this reason

Neither the EU nor the Australian Government shares your view on this. So I would be interested to know what you base it on.[/quote]
There hasn't been a trade deal between Australia and the EU for the reasons I describe.

As for your links, none of them are actually terribly specific so they don't refute my comment. "Improved access" for example is from a very low level.

The EU simply wasn't interested in a deal with anyone round these parts until after the Brexit referendum.

EU farming practices and subsidies undercut Aus/NZ exports and cause trade dumping by the EU here.

@HareofEasttown

I only ever buy British meat so nothing will change

That will depend on labelling rules.

I'm much more concerned about the welfare of the chickens in Thailand, for example, from where we import vast amount of chicken products. As the UK standards increase, its obvious that meat prices will go up and to buy more cheaply, manufacturers go abroad to where animals are reared more intensively with corresponding lower costs. To make out that the UK-Aus deal is going to suddenly lead us to eating animals raised with low welfare standards is very naive. It's been going on for years. But maybe if it happened before Brexit people aren't so concerned.

EU farming practices and subsidies undercut Aus/NZ exports and cause trade dumping by the EU here

What gets dumped in Aus/NZ ?

I know the place well, european products aren't widespread, father lives in NZ, partner Aus.

All of my meat is reared within 15 miles of my house. I'm not going to change that.

I can only get Australian or NZ meat where I live and I choose to by NZ.

The difference in the size of an Australian lamb to one from NZ is shocking and I can’t work out why.

Always buy from the butcher who sources from local farms. If I couldn’t do that I’d specifically seek out British meat in the supermarket.

I’ll only buy British purely because I prefer my money to stay in Britain if at all possible, usually the difference in cost is minimal anyway unless you’re buying huge quantities or you’re on the breadline.