Prepared meats that may contain meat

7.11.2019

Question for written answer E-003732/2019
to the Commission
Rule 138
Daniel Buda (PPE)

Prepared meats remain the staple food for most Romanians. Around 18% of all Romanians say they eat salami, other sausages and other cooked meats each day, and at least 72% eat them at least once a week. Most of them are young people aged from 18 to 34 in the middle income range. The average Romanian consumes close to 70 kilograms of meat each year.

Unfortunately, most prepared meats contain only a small proportion of meat. Under European legislation, the generic name ‘pork meat’ means all edible parts of the pig, including lipids and adipose fat, cartilage and tissue, etc., while prepared meats of low quality can create various health problems. Besides the need for transparent labelling, effective mechanisms need to be found to expressly prohibit use of the name ‘prepared meat’ if such products do not contain a significant proportion of raw matter of animal origin.

What tools does the Commission have at its disposal to prohibit use of the name ‘prepared meat’ if these products do not contain a significant proportion of raw matter of animal origin?