Animal welfare activists, food policy experts and farmers have reacted angrily after the government diluted post-Brexit trade agreement standards in its food strategy released on Monday.
In a version of the strategy that expired in the Guardian on Friday, the government is committed to facilitating the import of goods for countries if they have high standards of animal welfare.
The project reads: “We will seek liberalization related to animal welfare in our country [free trade agreements]which allows us to offer more generous liberalization for products certified as meeting certain key animal welfare criteria set out in the agreement.
But the final version is devoid of this and simply commits to “take into account” animal welfare and the environment when it comes to free trade agreements.
Caroline Lucas, Brighton Greens MP, said: “This seems like another embarrassingly wasted opportunity to enshrine strict animal welfare protection in our free trade agreements.
“We need a full explanation from the government as to why this element was removed and at whose request.
The government’s White Paper, declared the first such strategy in 75 years, rejected most of the ambitious policies of Food King Henry Dimbleby, which he outlined in a report published last year.
Dimbleby has made a number of high-profile proposals, including a significant expansion of free school meals, higher environmental and welfare standards in agriculture and a 30% reduction in meat and dairy consumption. None of them was included in the final strategy.
Rob Percival, head of food policy at the Soil Association, said: “It is remarkable that the approach to trade in the final strategy seems to be different from the one outlined in the draft that expired in the Guardian on Friday.
“Why is the strategy diluted?” Is this evidence of a rift in government, Defra? [the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs] surpassed by DIT [the Department for International Trade]? Farmers will need more than positive rhetoric if they want to continue to raise welfare and environmental standards. The government urgently needs to develop basic trade standards. “
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Claire Bass, CEO of Humane Society International, said: “This approach with smoke and mirrors to protect animal welfare in imported products simply will not be washed away. Instead of adopting rules on basic animal welfare standards to manage trade, we are now waiting for a “statement” on animal health that will “inform the negotiations”.
“This soft policy approach will make the United Kingdom a bargaining chip in negotiations with major trading partners such as the United States, and in practice the UK’s trade barriers to animal welfare will be removed at the first sign of opposition.
Farmers said they were disappointed with the dilution of the commercial part and that this put British producers at a disadvantage.
Patrick Holden, a dairy farmer and director of the Sustainable Food Trust, said the lifting of the animal welfare commitment was unjustified, adding: “Unfortunately, I’m not surprised to see this section removed. Farmers in this country are worried about being disappointed with lower-standard imports – and they are right.
“Britain had such an opportunity to show leadership in this area – it was a missed opportunity, now we are signing these dirty trade deals and continue to dilute what was already a very dilute trade package.
Defra declined to comment.
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