Meat-labelling rules make progress at EU

The new rules, which have the support of European health ministers, stipulate that mandatory country of origin labelling should be extended to lamb, pork and poultry.

Even although this was just the first step in the legislative process that will be part of a draft regulation on food information to consumers, NFU Scotland's food policy officer, Wendy Fleming, said she was pleased with the support the proposal had received.

"Consumers deserve to know, in a clear and concise manner, the exact origin of their food. NFUS has been pressing for mandatory country of origin labelling (Cool] to be extended to a far wider range of foods.

"Currently, Cool is only required on beef and veal as well as most fruit and veg. The agreement in Europe sees the extension of Cool to lamb, pork, poultry, milk and processed products."

However, the legislative process in Brussels is lengthy with the proposed regulation now going for a second reading in June next year.