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Lowering of food standards in UK a result from any trans-Atlantic deal?

  

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On Tuesday, The Guardian reported concern in the UK about any US-UK free trade deal. Several practices, outlawed in the EU are accepted in the US. These are listed as:

 

  1. Chlorine-washed chicken (banned in the EU).
  2. Hormone-treated beef (banned in the EU).
  3. Ractopamine in pork (banned in the EU).
  4. Chicken litter as animal feed (banned in the EU). Includes the birds’ faeces.
  5. Atrazine-treated crops (banned in the EU). Atrazine is a herbicide used on 90% of sugar cane, which can enter into the water supply and interfere with wildlife.
  6. Genetically modified foods (banned in the EU).
  7. Brominated vegetable oil (banned in the EU). BVO is used in citrus drinks; Coca-Cola announced it would stop using BVO in 2004.
  8. Potassium bromate (banned in the EU). A dough conditioner also banned in China, Brazil and Canada, in tests on rats it has been found to be a possible carcinogen.
  9. Azodicarbonamide. A bleaching agent for flour, it has been linked to an increase in tumours in rats.
  10. Food colourants (banned in the UK, regulated in the EU). Can lead to hyperactivity in children.

Campaigners are concerned that food safety standards will be sacrificed in the pursuit of a post-Brexit deal as British farmers would be required to drop standards to remain competitive. Find the report here.

Find relevant articles like BiotechnologyOrganic farming and Exporting on this website.