Whether to label non-stunned meat; how green will Brexit be? Late spring for flower producers

Farming Today

• Episode: Whether to label non-stunned meat; how green will Brexit be? Late spring for flower producers
• Website: Farming Today
• Feed URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qj8q/episodes/downloads.rss
• Duration: 00:13:41
• Published: 2018-04-13 07:00

How safe will environmental safeguards be after Brexit? Caz Graham discusses with Professor Charlotte Burns of Sheffield University, who's written a report for Friends of the Earth. She expresses concern the government only has 'vague aspirations' rather than strict standards on environmental protection after Brexit. DEFRA however say that they have been consistently clear that leaving gives us the UK an opportunity not only to maintain but enhance existing protections. In Scotland, Nancy Nicolson finds out about what the late spring means for Scottish flower growers. And as part of our investigation into food labelling this week we examine the case for and against indicating whether meat has been stunned or not before slaughter. John Fishwick, President of the British Veterinary Association, makes the case for the change on the basis of improved animal welfare informing the public. However, Simon Cohen of Shechita UK - which oversees food policy for the UK's Jewish population, which practises non-stun slaughter - disagrees. If labels are to be changed, he says it should indicate how the animal has been stunned, whether by electric shock, bolt or gas. Producer: Mark Smalley.