UK: Over six tonnes of illegal meat seized in Dover Port in one weekend

Published 2024년 12월 19일

Tridge summary

The Dover Port Health Authority (DPHA) has seized over 147 tonnes of illegal meat in the past year, including six tonnes from Romania, a country suffering from African swine fever (ASF). This seizure is a fraction of the illegal meat entering the UK, as the authority operates at only 20% capacity due to budget constraints. The National Pig Association (NPA) is calling for increased government funding for these checks, citing the risk to public health and the UK's pig industry, which is already threatened by ASF. The NPA also emphasizes flaws in the government's new Border Target Operating Model, leading to increased illegal meat imports.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

During the weekend of 6th and 7th December alone, the Dover Port Health Authority (DPHA) seized six tonnes of illegal meat, including pork from African swine fever-affected areas in Romania. A year ago, it emerged that, despite stretched resources, DPHA had seized 57 tonnes of illegal meat since the introduction of new ASF controls in September 2022. Over the past 12 months, that figure has soared to more than 147 tonnes. This is despite DPHA staff only providing 20% operational coverage at the Port of Dover due to budgetary pressures, again highlighting that the headline figure represents just the tip of the iceberg. As ASF has spread across Europe in recent years, Romania has been the worst-affected country, with 537 outbreaks recorded in domestic pigs in 2023. With continued cases this year, the whole country has been under restriction, and pork exports have been prohibited from infected areas, NPA explained. A total of 14 European countries reported domestic ASF outbreaks last ...

Source: UKFarmersguide