The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has written to the heads of all environmental health services across the country following a complaint that some environmental health officers were advising that consumers should buy only Lion eggs.
The agency has acted following a complaint from independent producer and packer Tony Burgess of Birchgrove Eggs. He contacted the FSA after watching a BBC television programme in which an environmental health officer recommended buying only Lion eggs. He pointed out to the FSA that other eggs produced in the UK were subject to the same stringent salmonella controls as those stamped with the Lion.
The agency accepted Tony's complaint earlier this year and said it would issue new guidance to environmental officers. FSA food hygiene delivery advisor Ned Mazhar wrote to Tony at the time. He said, "You may therefore wish to be aware that the agency intends to write to all local authorities shortly to re-iterate the position on the controls which apply to eggs. As you mention in your email, under EU legislation there is a National Control Programme (NCP) for salmonella in laying hens, which has been in place in the UK since 2008. The NCP is implemented by Defra and we recognise that all eggs produced in the UK should comply with this standard. Similar controls are required to be followed in other EU member states."
Since receiving that letter, Tony Burgess has continued to monitor developments to satisfy himself that the guidance was being issued. In a series of email exchanges with Ned Mazhar it transpired that the FSA was waiting to issue the new instructions together with other guidance that needed to be issued on eggs. But the letters have now finally gone out after Tony Burgess complained at the end of August that environmental health officers were still giving misleading advice.
Tony said in that complaint, "It has been brought to my attention today (29/8/12) that EHOs are still instructing caterers to only use Lion coded eggs. I can't tell you how frustrated and disappointed I am with the FSA over the inaction to date despite your previous statements."
He pressed the FSA yet again to issue clear guidelines to ensure that environmental health officers knew that all eggs were regulated under the National Control Programme.
Advice has now been sent out to heads of environmental health services by Karen Pratt of the enforcement and local authority delivery division at the FSA. She said in a letter to the heads, "I am aware that there has been some misunderstanding about salmonella controls for eggs and would like to take this opportunity to provide clarification. In accordance with EU legislation there is a National Control Programme (NCP) for salmonella in laying hens, which has been in place in the UK since 2008. The NCP is implemented by Defra and it should be recognised that all egg producers are required to comply with this standard, regardless of whether they belong to a certified assurance scheme. Similar controls are also in place in other EU member states."
In the letter she provided a link to the Defra web site from which environmental health officers can
obtain more detailed information about the National Control Programme.
Tony Burgess is delighted that the FSA has finally issued the guidelines. "I am very pleased with what they have stated," he told the Ranger. "It is clear advice now to local authorities and to people employed by local authorities that all registered egg producers are monitored by the National Control Programme. It is not just the Lion. That is clear."
Tony said it was very frustrating when customers were misled into thinking that they needed to buy eggs stamped with the Lion to be safe. Another independent egg producer, Julie Hewitt, who farms near Bodmin in Cornwall, recently complained that Lion were scaring her customers away by sending out letters questioning whether the eggs they were buying were legal. She told that Ranger that a number customers started to question her about her eggs after the British Egg Information Service (BEIS) started sending out a letter suggesting that businesses should buy eggs marked with the Lion to ensure they complied with the newly introduced European Union ban on battery cages. She said that some had cancelled their orders for her eggs and switched to the Lion.
"People are getting these letters asking whether their eggs are legal, whether they are compliant, and it's scaring people. I had someone from Truro rang me up. That's how I got the letter - he scanned it and sent it to me," said Julie. "He said, 'I have had this letter saying your eggs aren't legal.' He interpreted it that way, which is obviously the way that Lion wanted it interpreted."
Julie said, "We all come under Defra and we are all subject to the same stringent ideals and hygiene and salmonella testing, just as the Lion people are." She said, "We have a completely closed site. We haven't brought anything in for years. Everything is kept as clean as possible. We had an egg inspector and Defra vet turn up unannounced in March. They came in and everything was fine."
Tony Burgess complained to the FSA after watching an episode of the series Food Inspectors on BBC1 in which an environmental health officer from Southend said that consumers should only buy or use Lion coded eggs because they were vaccinated against Salmonella. As well as complaining to the FSA, Tony also complained to the BBC, which responded in a letter from the editorial complaints unit.
The letter read, "The EHO's comments about Lion eggs were made in the context of that specific inspection, where the takeaway owner actually used Lion eggs, so I think it was perfectly legitimate to include these comments in the programme.??However, with hindsight, I accept that it would have been better if Matt Allwright's subsequent piece of commentary had referred to the existence of other accreditation bodies or had addressed the issue of egg safety in more general terms. For that reason, we will be making changes to this particular section of the programme for any future repeats."
The letter said, "Ultimately, the Food Inspectors is all about encouraging viewers to take an interest in the provenance of their food, how it should be prepared and what to look for in order to ensure, insofar as is possible, that it is safe to eat. Egg safety, and the accreditation process, is an issue which ties in with that ethos and we would be greatly interested in exploring it in detail should the series be re-commissioned - in which case we would certainly welcome your personal input."
Tony is a Freedom Food producer who uses the SALSA (Safe and Local Supplier Approval) scheme. SALSA is a joint venture between the National Farmers' Union, the Food and Drink Federation, the British Hospitality Association and the British Retail Consortium.
