EC urged to ban protein additives

A British food watchdog has urged the European Commission to ban the adding of beef and pork proteins to chicken.

The warning follows recent surveys by the British Food Standards Agency (FSA) - an equivalent to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland - which found high levels of added water in chicken mainly destined for the catering industry.

Processors have been accused of using proteins to “pump up” the size of meat by retaining added water.

Although the practice of adding protein is not illegal - if declared on the product’s packaging – the FSA spoke out after its surveys found that much of the chicken was mislabeled.