Bang goes roast duck for dinner

FOR many it is the true taste of Scotland. Wild game such as pheasant, partridge, rabbit, hare, duck and venison are traditional fare in rural areas and can be found on the menus in many of our best restaurants.

But perhaps no more if proposed European legislation is passed. According to Struan Stevenson, a Scottish Conservative MEP, some of the best known tastes of our countryside could be banned forever if Brussels bureaucrats get their way.

Legislation due to come before the European Parliament in the new year would change the rules governing products of animal origin intended for human consumption. It would mean wild game would have to be certified as fit and healthy before being shot and then be inspected by a vet to ensure that no "abnormalities" occurred as a result of the hunting process.

Opponents of the proposals say they would be unworkable in Scotland where game is often shot in remote rural areas and could mean huge additional costs. While concerned at the situation, they hope that the regulations can be altered to exempt wild game.

Mr Stevenson said: "This proposed new legislation beggars belief and is clearly a step too far, given that pheasants and rabbits fetch little more than 1 when sold on to a butcher. If this section of the bill is supported, the rules governing the sale of wild game will become so tied up with red tape that it will in effect make the purchase of such items untenable.

"Neither the gamekeeper nor the butcher can afford to carry this unjustified additional cost for these delicacies which by their very nature are ‘wild’ game."

He said if the measures are passed, thousands of people who make their living from providing and servicing the wild-game market could be put out of work.

The bill, due to be debated in February, would dictate that any wild game, furred or feathered, sold to a butcher must be accompanied by an official declaration by a trained person who has witnessed the animal being shot and can vouch for the fact that it was healthy before being shot.

It must also be subjected to a post-mortem inspection by a qualified vet to detect any abnormalities not caused by the hunting process.

Steve Tapper, the director of policy and public affairs for the Game Conservancy Trust, said: "The provisions of the food hygiene directive will be implemented by the Food Standards Agency, who have yet to decide on many of these issues although we are in no doubt that there will be some changes.

"We envisage that there will be some training needs for those that market game to the public, but we have been led to believe there will be suitable exemptions for those that deal with small quantities on a local basis.

"The ball is firmly in the FSA’s court and we are awaiting concrete proposals from them before commenting further."

Michael Gibson, a Scottish board member of the Food Standards Agency and chairman of the Food Advisory Committee, said his organisation is well aware of the problem and is working to make the European Union aware of the implications for Scotland.

He said: "This has not been rubber-stamped yet and we have to get a pragmatic, effective solution.

"Quite clearly, in a Scottish context, it is totally unworkable to have a vet out on the hill for inspection before you shoot. There is a lot of support and we hope we can get this resolved."

A spokesman for the Association of Deer Management Groups said: "While this latest position clearly renews concerns, it has been our view, following discussions with the Meat Hygiene Inspectorate and FACE [the Federation of Associations for Hunting and Conservation of the European Union], that the European directive will not be as extreme as is suggested.

"We have been advised that wild game will be treated differently and in a way reflecting its manner of harvesting. For instance, a stalker or gamekeeper will be able to carry out a post mortem and put their name to the necessary certification, while inspection by a vet would only be required to take place at the point of processing."

Alasdair Laing, a landowner in Logie, Morayshire, said it is vitally important the situation regarding the wild game industry in Scotland is highlighted before the debate.

He said: "This legislation would be totally impossible and the cost of implementing it ridiculous. There must be reasonable steps taken that ensure, before they reach the market-place, that goods are fit for human consumption, but these are in place already. When did you last hear of someone getting food poisoning from a pheasant?"