A recent news item which is dominating the meat industry at the moment is the likelihood of chlorinated chicken being introduced to our supermarkets. A new ‘Agriculture Bill‘ being voted on in the House of Commons leaves the British meat industry susceptible to imports from US markets, which uses chlorine to wash the meat before packaging.

Farming associations and groups have tried to campaign against this reform to the agricultural bill. As the introduction of chlorinated chicken is likely to lower the standards of meat available in the UK.

What is Chlorinated Chicken?

Chlorinated chicken is predominantly found in the US, where chicken is washed in a chlorine solution in order to kill harmful bacteria to humans, such as E-Coli and Salmonella.

Whilst this is a good way of getting rid of harmful bacteria, this method also leaves a harmful chemical on the chicken. If consumed in larger amounts, this could be harmful to your health as reported recently by the Independent.

The European Commission has previously banned the use of chlorine to wash chicken, as it states that if you were to eat 5% of your body weight in chlorinated chicken, it could lead to serious health problems.

Stick to Local Butchers like Burts

As a local butcher in the South-East, we’re committed to our traditional methods of washing and preparing chicken. We won’t resort to chlorination in order to make sure our meat is rid of harmful bacteria. You can be rest-assured our high-quality and cleanliness standards won’t be affected by the new Agricultural Bill.

So if you’re not keen on consuming chlorinated chicken that may be on your supermarket shelves in the future; make sure you buy your meat products from local butchers.

At the moment we’re also offering a delivery service for people living in their local area of East Sussex. This means customers can buy our fantastic produce without even leaving their home. Our delivery service is particularly good for people who are self-isolating and need meat products delivered for them.

If you have any questions about our cleanliness and quality control methods, you can read our Service and Quality page. You can also get in touch if you have any more questions.