Recent scandals have no impact on consumption of Slovak poultry

Recent scandals have no impact on consumption of Slovak poultry

The consumption of domestic poultry in Slovakia isn't rising, despite numerous scandals concerning imported birds, stated Slovak Poultry Breeders Union (UHS) director Daniel Molnar at a press conference on Monday in reference to the ongoing scandal surrounding Brazilian meat tainted with salmonella. Molnar pointed to the fact that more than 9,000 tonnes of poultry is imported from Brazil into Slovakia per year, equalling one sixth of Slovakia's annual poultry production. "There have been cases of Brazilian chicken breasts containing antibiotics, Polish chicken infected with salmonella, Polish chicken with unauthorised polyphosphates, Polish eggs with high levels of dioxins and infected with salmonella over the past two years," he said.

According to Molnar, many canteen owners have succumbed to pressure from distributors to prepare meals from cheap and poor-quality imported poultry, causing health risks to customers.
"School canteens should be required to purchase poultry from domestic producers. Consumers should be more oriented towards purchasing domestic poultry," he added. This proposal, however, risks breaching the European Union's legislation on free access to the market as it would mean discriminating against producers from other countries of the European Union. In addition to this, critics say, it does not protect people against poor quality meat they buy to cook at home.

Anca Dragu, Photo: TASR

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