UK: Defra parliamentary questions round

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MPs quizzed Ministers about a lack of British lamb in supermarkets, halal and kosher labelling, glyphosate, Brexit and more this morning.

We summarise the highlights of the last Defra Parliamentary Questions before the election.

Chair of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs committee, Neil Parish, told Farming Minister George Eustice it was wrong for supermarkets to be stocking so much New Zealand lamb at this time of year.

He called on Mr Eustice to ‘bring it to the attention of the major retailers’ that British lamb should be in shops.

The Minister responded by saying people wanted to buy high-quality lamb from the UK, but said high prices during the winter meant a number of sheep producers sold their lamb early, meaning there was less available now.

Halal and kosher labelling

In response to a call from Shipley MP Philip Davies for all halal and kosher meat products to be ‘properly labelled’ at the point of sale, Mr Eustice hinted that the Government could explore the issue after Brexit.

But he added: “There are some difficulties – there is no single definition of halal or kosher, for instance – which make compulsory labelling complex.”