PTF chairman wary of anti-meat argument

Speaking at the PTF annual dinner at the Grosvenor House on Tuesday, Stanton stated that although the PTF agreed that the problem over methane emissions had to be addressed, cutting meat and dairy was not the only option.

He said: “We are concerned about the pressure to reduce consumption of animal products to limit methane production from livestock. Methane is a greenhouse gas and we agree that this problem must be addressed. But avoiding meat and dairy products is not the only option. A lot of research is being done in this area. We believe that a better solution will be found. We urge our suppliers to make this issue an absolute priority.”

Stanton added that nutritional value of animal products is another important topic and that there was a danger that drip-feeding consumers with negative messages about effects of animal products in their diets will damage the market eventually. “We need to remind people that simple meat and dairy products are natural, healthy foods in their own right. There are such things as healthy foods as well as healthy diets. These are foods that contain protein, vitamins and essential minerals.”

The Direct Table Foods MD also said that the food industry needed to make sure that the country of origin labelling debate does not reduce the flexibility to source ingredients and raw materials from different countries as necessary for price or availability reasons.

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