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Disappointment over delays in meat sector
Piglet castration in the Netherlands will soon only be
allowed after the use of anaesthetics, but preparations to achieve this are not
going as smoothly as has been hoped.
Fund not created
The Dutch central
agency for retail trade (CBL) yesterday expressed its disappointment as a
promised fund, aimed to make the changes possible, has not been created yet.
According to agreements, the fund had to be created by the Dutch central
organisation for the meat sector (COV) and the Product Board for Livestock and
Meat (PVV). Once created, supermarkets would donate 3.7 million euro to the fund
to enable the transition to castration with the use of anaesthesia.
"The
money is waiting to be paid, but we cannot donate it yet," said Marc Jansen,
CBL's head of consumers and quality. "I am not amused. The sector thinks the
fund is necessary. They criticise authorities for being slow and bureaucratic,
but they themselves are the same."
Properly
done
COV chairman Wim van Pelt acknowledged that the fund hasn't
been created yet, but dismisses any of Jansen's comments. "It's a bit simple to
think like that. We are absolutely busy creating something, but things have to
be done properly. We expect to create the fund before October
1."
Not only the fund is causing some delays. "Producers have to
start following courses."
Officially, as from March 1, 2009, Dutch
supermarkets will cease selling pork from pigs castrated without anaesthesia.
That was agreed in industry-wide talks in 2007 and 2008. This means that
producers have to switch to different methods as from now, in order to make that
deadline.
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