Three of the UK’s leading supermarkets have launched emergency inspections into their chicken supplies after the results of a five-month investigation conducted by the Guardian were published at the end of July. The newspaper’s investigation uncovered a series of alleged hygiene failings in the British poultry industry.
Chicken - Isla del Sol, Colombia, 2009
The allegations have been made against two of the largest UK poultry processors, 2 Sisters Food Group and Faccenda. They relate to two factories owned by 2 Sisters that supply fresh chicken and chicken for ready meals to Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Aldi, and Marks & Spencer supermarkets, and to the fast food chain KFC.
Allegations have also been made against farms and an abattoir owned by Faccenda, which supplies Asda supermarkets and Nando’s restaurants.
Specific incidents include a factory floor flooded with chickens’ guts in which bacteria can flourish, carcasses coming into contact with workers’ boots then returned to the production line, and other poor practices.
The evidence prompted Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Marks & Spencer to launch emergency investigations into their chicken sources.
The executive director of consumer magazine Which?, Richard Lloyd, said: “The Guardian’s investigation raises serious concerns. Tackling campylobacter has to become a much bigger priority for supermarkets and their suppliers as it is responsible for thousands of cases of food poisoning and the deaths of 100 people every year”.
The British Poultry Council (BPC) issued a statement saying that these incidents will be thoroughly investigated and corrective action taken to ensure they are not repeated. However, according to the BPC “they are isolated events and are in no way representative of the high standards of the chicken industry as a whole”.
On 5 August the British Food Standards Agency (FSA) published the first set of quarterly results from a new survey of Campylobacter on fresh shop-bought chickens. The results show that 59% of birds tested positive for the presence of Campylobacter. In 4% of samples Campylobacter was identified on the outside of the packaging.
You can read a comprehensive report of the Guardian investigation findings on the newspaper’s website.
The BBC has produced a radio programme that looks at the modern poultry industry, which can be listened to (from some countries only) on the BBC website.
