The now-enacted will of (some of) the people

[HanoiVillan]

4 hours ago, tonyh29 said:

even the chlorinated foods that  remainers love to harp on about ,  the salad you eat is being washed in  chlorine and around 10% of product tested is seen to be over the EU's approved level  ... and guess what , its higher than the chlorine levels in the infamous USA chicken

Isn't the point about chlorine not that chlorine itself is harmful (after all, I don't suffer any serious consequences when ingesting accidentally at the swimming pool) but that the chlorine-washing in American meat production is there to cover up worse standards previously on the production line. 

I'm not in any way an expert on this, but I thought that was the point being made. 

[bickster]

possibly the only shock here is that it took this long

 

[HanoiVillan]

How did I miss this?

 

[bickster]

8 minutes ago, HanoiVillan said:

How did I miss this?

 

Probably because it's an honorary position these days it doesn't make the news

[mjmooney]

3 minutes ago, bickster said:

Probably because it's an honorary position these days it doesn't make the news

I'm supposed to be doing it next Wednesday, between 2.00 and 2.30 pm, but I'm expecting a parcel. Can one of you cover for me? 

[bickster]

Just now, mjmooney said:

I'm supposed to be doing it next Wednesday, between 2.00 and 2.30 pm, but I'm expecting a parcel. Can one of you cover for me? 

I was thinking they should rename it, Lord Mayor of the ERG or something. I'd love to do it. Just go to Brussels and say revoke 3 times whilst spinning around and the world is instantly better

[blandy]

1 hour ago, tonyh29 said:

16% of 1,295 Sky customers are bonkers    If forced to choose between ....

So no remain (cancel article 50) or 2nd ref as options - the nearest being "long delay" - not really a choice of all the options. Not much to conclude, other than "No deal" effwits are really uninformed.

[bickster]

1 minute ago, blandy said:

So no remain (cancel article 50) or 2nd ref as options - the nearest being "long delay" - not really a choice of all the options. Not much to conclude, other than "No deal" effwits are really uninformed.

A snap poll conducted in Stoke on Trent and Boston

[a m ole]

2 hours ago, tonyh29 said:

16% of 1,295 Sky customers are bonkers    If forced to choose between ....

Would you rather... spit or swallow?

[HanoiVillan]

48 minutes ago, bickster said:

Probably because it's an honorary position these days it doesn't make the news

I was mostly referring to the 'I have already contacted the EU to let them know who I am' line. 

[chrisp65]

Redwood rises from the underworld yet again to spew lies and deceive people.

 

 

 

 

[Xann]

It couldn't be that the pricks that have got their investments set up to take advantage of a no deal Brexit disaster are getting twitchy?

[ml1dch]

On the cross-party talks:

 

 

 

[bickster]

 

[bickster]

I really hope lots of people follow this rocket polishers advice

 

[peterms]

19 hours ago, HanoiVillan said:

Isn't the point about chlorine not that chlorine itself is harmful (after all, I don't suffer any serious consequences when ingesting accidentally at the swimming pool) but that the chlorine-washing in American meat production is there to cover up worse standards previously on the production line

Yes.  Broadly speaking, our approach is to try to prevent foodborne diseases from arising, the US approach is to treat food at the end of the process to kill off diseases that have emerged.

The figures for food poisoning suggest that our approach is a lot better.

Quote

Fears new trade deals with US will increase UK food poisoning

Fresh analysis by Sustain published today flags food safety fears for future UK trade deals. Figures suggest that the percentage of people who fall ill with food poisoning annually is up to ten times higher in the US than the UK. Sustain fears treating increased food poisoning could increase deaths from food poisoning and cost the NHS and UK economy at least £1bn extra per year.

Today Sustain publishes fresh analysis that flags food safety fears for future UK trade deals. Figures suggest that the percentage of people who fall ill with food poisoning annually is up to ten times higher in the US than the UK. We fear that treating increased food poisoning could increase deaths from food poisoning and cost the NHS and UK economy at least £1bn extra per year.

We examined the food safety records of the United States, as the Government has already set up working groups with them to discuss a possible future deal.

We found:

• The US reports higher rates of illness from foodborne illness than in the UK. Annually, 14.7% (48m) of the US population suffer from an illness, versus 1.5% (1m) in the UK. This is nearly ten times the percentage of population. [see note 3 below]
• The US reports higher rates of deaths from foodborne illness than in the UK. The annual death rate in the US is 3,000 per annum, versus 500 in the UK. [The US population is about 5 times the size of the UK.]
• The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report around 380 deaths in the US each year attributed to foodborne salmonella poisoning. The most recent epidemiological lab data from Public Health England, 2006 to 2015 shows no deaths in England and Wales from salmonella. Salmonella food poisoning is most commonly caused by consumption of contaminated food of animal origin, such as beef, chicken, milk, fish or eggs.
• The Food Standards Agency recently updated its guidance to say that eating soft-boiled British Lion Mark eggs is now safe, thanks to a dramatic reduction in the presence of salmonella. By contrast, the US Food and Drug Administration still advises US consumers to hard boil their eggs due to salmonella fears. They report 79,000 cases of illness and 30 deaths a year from salmonella infected eggs.
• The US reports an estimated 1,591 cases of food poisoning from Listeria Monocytogenes, the bacteria that causes listeriosis food poisoning. In England and Wales there were 135 reported cases in 2017. Listeriosis is usually caught from eating food such as cooked sliced meats, cured meats, smoked fish, cooked shellfish, blue veined and mould-ripened soft cheeses, pâté, and pre-prepared sandwiches and salads.

Using UK Food Standards Agency estimates of the current costs of foodborne disease infections, Sustain made a conservative estimate of £1bn additional costs to the UK economy – to the NHS and from loss of earnings – if similar patterns of food poisoning occurred in the UK as currently occur in the US - across a range of food poisoning pathogens and contaminants. [see note 2]

The total could be very substantially higher – possibly several billion more – if other costs were included, such as from pain and suffering, higher death rates, and additional hygiene inspection costs required for checking new higher volumes of imported food. The number of local authority food enforcement officers and trading standards inspectors has declined by 22% and 57% respectively in recent years, so new staff and facilities would be needed to check increased imports. Estimates also do not take into account any additional costs to the food industry from increased food poisoning, such as recalls, loss of reputation and compensation claims.

Kath Dalmeny, chief executive of Sustain, said: “Our analysis shows that if we accept imported meat without robust standards, we may also import increased food poisoning and possibly even deaths. The US is demanding we drop our food standards for trade, but our research shows cheap US meat will come at a cost to our health and economy."

“New UK trade deals must support hygienic farming methods and good animal welfare. It is absolutely unacceptable that trade decisions will be made behind closed doors by UK Trade Secretary Liam Fox and trade negotiators – without consulting the public, food safety scientists and Parliament. We need to know for sure that Dr Fox’s team are not trading away our safety. There needs to be proper public and scientific scrutiny of all negotiations that affect what we eat.”

Katherine Button, who coordinates the Campaign for Better Hospital Food, added:

“It seems likely that cheaper and lower-standard imported meat would end up in mass catering such as for hospital patients. When budgets are squeezed, especially in the NHS, we often see food quality suffer. Yet vulnerable hospital patients are the very people who should be served delicious and nutritious food that is absolutely safe to eat; not exposed to meat, dairy products and eggs carrying a higher risk of food poisoning. Maintaining and improving food standards must be an absolute priority for trade negotiators. And they need to know we’re watching.”

Sustain is encouraging everyone to write to their MP and ask for accountability, transparency and democracy in trade deals. To find out how you can join in, click here.

 

The US approach also allows animal welfare standards that are far below ours, encourages widespread use of antibiotics on a scale which poses a major long-term health risk by undermining the effectiveness of antibiotics through allowing resistance to build up (which could lead to deaths on a scale far greater than food poisoning), and allows the soil structure and fertility to be harmed through monoculture and dependence on articifial fertilisers instread of a regenerative approach to agriculture.

There is nothing good in this.

[a m ole]

2 hours ago, bickster said:

I really hope lots of people follow this rocket polishers advice

 

Roger Helmet. why do they have fantastic names? is their shit a result of being bullied at school?

[Enda]

 

[Awol]

Hopefully Mr Macron will deliver the coup de grace to this abortion of a process and see us out on 12th of April, once and for all. 

It’s absolutely certain that if it is left to Parliament we will not leave. 

[StefanAVFC]

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