Following discussions with the Farmers' Union of Wales and NFU Cymru, Plaid Cymru MEP Jill Evans has called for a halt to EU imports of beef from Brazil.

Ms Evans, Plaid's Vice president, said:

"The standards for Welsh produced beef are stringent, and the meat is of the highest quality. However, the same rules and regulations are not enforced in Brazil.

"The recent publication of the EU’s Food and Veterinary Office report demonstrates serious shortcomings in the production of beef in Brazil. It seems that Brazil has done very little to rectify shortcomings pointed out by EU inspectors in 2003 and the report concludes that they had little confidence in the safety of beef exports from Brazil.

"This highlights the huge difference between meat produced in Brazil, but destined for Europe, and the healthy livestock reared under strict guidelines properly enforced in Wales. Anybody attending the Royal Welsh and other shows around the country as I have done can see this for themselves.

"I believe that there should be an immediate cessation of beef imports from Brazil, a country whose food production standards have been shown to to fall far short of those set by the EU for Welsh farmers. If there is no suspension, consumer safety cannot be guaranteed.

"And of course, as more and more people question the distances which food has travelled before it reaches their tables, the advantages of quality, home produced meat are clearer and clearer."

NOTES:

The EU inspectors found that little progress had been made on a number of problems which were notified to the Brazilian authorities in 2003. These include the uncontrolled supply and use of veterinary medicinal products (VMPs), a number of which are banned in animal production in the EU. Promises had been made in 2003 to introduce an accurate system for recording VMP use and for regular testing of animals to check for harmful residues. These requirements are not yet being met.

“There was a discovery of large quantities of growth hormones on a cattle farm. These are banned in the EU and in many other countries besides because of the risks they are known to pose to human health. The FVO felt that the lack of recording, monitoring and testing at all stages of production served to “undermine confidence” in beef exported to the EU from Brazil.

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