Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2011-07-05-Speech-2-624-000"
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"en.20110705.38.2-624-000"2
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"Madam President, I am delighted that, after years of work, we are taking a big step in the right direction in informing consumers about what is in the food that they eat.
Unfortunately, it seemed at times as though we forgot that this regulation is about food information to consumers. The amount of lobbying from the food and drink industry has been unprecedented, and clearly a lot of money has been spent trying to stop transparent labelling. Nevertheless, we have gained many positive things in this compromise. I fought hard for country-of-origin labelling and am pleased that the Council has agreed to origin labelling for fresh lamb, pork, goat and poultry, just as we have already for beef, fish, fruit and vegetables.
We have also convinced the Council that the Commission should produce a report, and possible legislation, on the origin of meat in processed food within two years. Why is this important? At present I can buy a chicken sandwich which says ‘produced in the UK’ when in fact the chicken has come from Thailand. We really do need more transparency about where our food comes from.
The issue of trans fats was also of great concern to the Socialist Group. Trans fats are often added unnecessarily to processed foods, when we know that they can increase risks of a whole range of problems, including heart disease, infertility and Alzheimer’s disease. This agreement ensures that the Commission will investigate the problem and report back within three years. This group will be pushing for an EU-wide ban on added trans fats similar to that currently applied in Denmark and Austria.
I am also proud that we persuaded Member States to agree to label all types of vegetable oil. Consumers will now be able to see when unsustainable palm oil is used in foods at the expense of precious rainforests and to put pressure on manufacturers to use oil from a sustainable source.
The huge disappointment for me is that mandatory front-of-pack labelling has not been adopted. It seems to me that, if we are serious about tackling some of our major health issues, such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes, then we really should have given consumers the information they need to quickly identify healthier options.
However, I am glad that existing systems can continue to be used on a voluntary basis, including consumer-friendly schemes such as the traffic-light system. I hope that more and more retailers and manufacturers will start to use them.
Let us not forget that this is the first time that back-of-pack nutritional labelling will be mandatory under European law, which means that now consumers will always have the opportunity to see how much salt, sugar and fat and other key nutrients are in their food. The vote tomorrow represents real progress for transparent food labelling. We will continue to push for improvements that benefit consumers."@en1
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