Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to promote increased vegetable consumption at the Food Foundations Veg Summit on 24 October 2017.
Answered by George Eustice
At the Food Foundations vegetable Summit of 24 October, the Minister took part in a panel to discuss vegetable production. At the Summit, I pledged that Government would launch a new web market that food producers, including vegetable producers, could use to promote their products to public sector bodies to increase public procurement of nutritious local food.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions her Department has had with the Department of Health on the potential health implications of the lifting of EU sugar quotas.
Answered by George Eustice
The removal of EU sugar beet quotas will allow British growers to move towards competing with other sugar producers around the world. The Government’s Childhood Obesity Plan includes a range of actions to support families in reducing their sugar consumption, including a new Soft Drinks Industry Levy on sugary drinks and a challenge to industry to reduce 20% of sugar from the products that contribute most sugar to children’s diets by 2020. Defra meets regularly with the Department for Health and Public Health England to discuss these and other issues.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has she made of the implications for her Department's policies of the findings of the recent European Union Food and Veterinary Office report on India, audit number 2014-2705.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
The report was discussed in the Plant Health section of the European Commission’s Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed in November. After consideration by the Commission and Member States, the Committee will advise on whether enough has been done to justify an early review of the EU legislation which imposes the ban. We are pressing for an early decision, to provide clarity in advance of the next mango import season.