UK government accused of neglecting welfare and carbon commitments in new trade deals

Published 2023년 3월 14일

Tridge summary

The UK's trade deals with North America and other countries could potentially conflict with its carbon targets, according to farming groups. They express concerns over the absence of binding stipulations on animal welfare and environmental impact in these deals. The British Meat Processors Association's CEO, Nick Allen, points out that the lack of a standardized system for measuring carbon footprint makes it difficult to regulate imports based on emissions. Additionally, the government's stance on not lowering food safety and animal welfare standards in trade negotiations has faced opposition from the farming industry and environmental organizations. The government maintains that it will not compromise on these standards in any trade agreement, including its accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

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Original content

Further imports of meat from North America could also compromise the UK’s carbon targets, especially following recent trade deals with Australia and New Zealand, farming groups have said. Nick Allen, CEO of the British Meat Processors Association, raised concerns over the lack of binding stipulations on aspects such as animal welfare and environmental impact in free trade agreements. “The UK has higher welfare standards than most of the countries we import from, which is a challenge for our local producers. If new trade deals follow the same formula as the recent ones with Australia and New Zealand, this will only exacerbate the problem and put the UK at a further disadvantage,” he told Farmers Guide. “It’s up to the Government negotiators to include binding stipulations on things like animal welfare, however nothing was written into the two recent free trade agreements. This has strengthened the case for countries like Canada to demand similar access to our market.” Regarding ...

Source: UKFarmersguide