Press Release - FSA meat processing charge updates only tinker on the fringes

FSA meat processing charge updates only tinker on the fringes.

The Food Standards Agency is doing no more than sugar its bitter, Meat Hygiene Service cost recovery pill, by offering to phase in plans to extract a further £31.8 million a year, or an increase of up to 60 per cent, in surveillance charges from the UK’s meat processors over the three years ending April 2015, says the National Beef Association.

And it is also trying to sweeten an angry red meat industry into accepting its controversial proposals by offering to reduce charges for a yet to be agreed number of lower throughput abattoirs - which would suffer most damage if the increase in its meat inspection costs was delivered as planned.

“But nothing has been offered that addresses the core problem created by its inability to run a cost-efficient UK-wide abattoir hygiene and animal welfare inspection operation that delivers a better service, for less expense, and is more in line with overall expectations,” explained the Association’s director, Kim Haywood.

“As a result farmers’ organisations, like ourselves, remain justifiably fearful that the minute the FSA’s full cost recovery measures begin to hit the processing sector they will immediately be passed back, in almost 100 per cent terms, to livestock finishers either through reduced primestock prices or higher slaughter charges.”

“This being the case the NBA is disappointed by the FSA’s decision to fumble at the fringes of reform and its refusal, or inability, to acknowledge that its target of removing a meagre £5.5 million, or less than ten per cent of cost from its £55.5 million annual meat inspection bill, falls well short of the level of cost reduction being routinely taken by typical commercial companies.”

“In these circumstances there is little in the FSA’s new offer to persuade the NBA that the red meat sector should no longer accuse it, or its Meat Hygiene Service, of being bloated by serious over-staffing or running an outdated, autocratic, and inefficient inspection service that is only able to survive because procedures allow the FSA to take the easy way out and force full recovery of its costs on the business it charges.”

“If pressed the NBA would agree that a three year phase-in is better than immediate adoption. It would also confirm it prefers the FSA’s option three sweetener, which would mean all businesses processing the equivalent of less than 5,000 head of cattle a year would qualify for a yet to be agreed reduction in inspection charges, to the other two alternatives.”

“The retention of the widest possible national processing network through the preservation of low throughput plants is necessary and will be popular. However it is even more important that the Meat Hygiene Service is persuaded to undertake root and branch reform.”

“In other EU countries slaughterers themselves employ technical specialists to maintain abattoir standards and these in turn are answerable to a single, independent, Official Veterinary Surgeon, paid by a government agency like the FSA and who is always on site.”

“If this simpler, cheaper, system can work elsewhere it can work in the UK too and the NBA is disappointed that the FSA has not presented this, convincing approach to reform, to the industry for consideration and has only tinkered at its fringes instead,” Ms Haywood added.

For more information contact:

Kim Haywood, NBA director.  Tel. 0131 336 1754