Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Wyre)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the 16-week protection period for the marketing of free-range eggs following the imposition of Government measures to control the spread of avian influenza on poultry farmers that are complying with those marketing rules.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Egg Marketing Standards provides a 16-week derogation period during which the free-range description can be retained on eggs even if hens have been housed.
Defra currently has no plans to review this derogation period. However, in recognition of the pressures the egg sector is currently facing, particularly rising input costs alongside the impacts of Avian Influenza, Defra has granted a concession which will apply if the housing orders that are currently in place in England exceed the 16 week derogation period. This concession will allow producers and packers, on a one-off basis, the option to use either direct print to pack or an affixed label on free-range boxes. Accompanying clear and transparent point of sale signage should also be in place to ensure consumers are not misled and to avoid undermining consumer confidence in the free-range industry.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Wyre)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that the compensation protocol and payment scheme for poultry farms found to be affected by avian influenza provides sufficient economic support to those farmers.
Answered by Mark Spencer
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Upper Bann, on 18 November 2022, PQ UIN 78897.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Wyre)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to increase support for (a) the development of avian influenza vaccines and (b) other research to help tackle the outbreak of that disease.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Defra continues to invest in avian influenza research and monitors the situation in Europe and globally. Any future decisions on disease control measures, including the use of vaccination, will be based upon the latest scientific, ornithological, and veterinary advice.
In conjunction with the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD), Defra monitors the development and availability of vaccines for use to protect against avian influenza and as a control measure during avian influenza outbreaks, as they are put forward for marketing authorisation by vaccine manufacturers.
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) leads government funded research on animal disease control and alongside the Government’s continued investment in the Avian Influenza National Reference Laboratory and APHA’s Weybridge site, earlier this year an eight-strong consortium ‘FluMap’ led by APHA and funded by Defra and the Biotechnology and Biosciences Research Council (BBSRC) was launched that received £1.5 million in funding to develop new strategies to tackle avian influenza outbreaks. This year-long research project will help build our understanding in a number of key areas, including why the current virus strains have formed larger and longer outbreaks and understanding transmission and infection in different bird populations. The research gaps addressed by the consortium were identified from the recent STAR-IDAZ International Research Consortium Animal Influenza Research Review and knowledge gaps identified during recent avian influenza outbreaks.
The STAR-IDAZ International Research Consortium is a global initiative aiming to coordinate research programmes at the international level and to contribute to the development of new and improved animal health strategies for priority diseases, infections and issues.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Wyre)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in the context of the avian influenza outbreak, if she will hold discussions with her counterparts in devolved governments to encourage the expansion of mandatory housing measures to all poultry and captive birds in Great Britain.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Disease control is a devolved matter, and it is for the devolved administrations to assess their disease risks and respond accordingly. However, the UK Government works with the devolved administrations to seek a coordinated response wherever possible to control disease. All four administrations are an integral part of the UK-wide decision-making processes for animal disease outbreaks.