Scottish Government
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Concern over beef prices
Lochhead asks QMS to investigate falling cattle price and link to imports.
Concerns raised by farmers over a considerable drop in the price of cattle are being looked in to by Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead.
Mr Lochhead has met a number of farmers recently who have raised concerns over a sharp decline in fat cattle prices since the start of the year – and possible links to beef imports from other countries that are being wrongly packaged and labelled as UK meat.
Mr Lochhead has asked Quality Meat Scotland to work with Food Standards Scotland to investigate the situation and to report back to him by the end of May 2015.
Mr Lochhead said:
“Many farmers I have met recently were very concerned about a sudden drop this year in fat cattle prices, which could be linked to an increasing volume of imported beef into the UK market.
“It’s important that we fully understand this issue, which is why I’ve asked Quality Meat Scotland to investigate the level of beef imports since the start of the year, and any contributing factors that are having an effect on the price of cattle.
“The speculation that imported meat is being passed off as a domestic product is a serious matter. The Scottish Government has drawn this to the attention of Food Standards Scotland and have asked them to work with QMS to establish if any breach of the EU regulations is taking place.”
