Government demands more detail from Elliott review

18-May-2014 - Last updated on 28-Sep-2021 at 11:18 GMT

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The government has demanded more information on the recommendations in professor Chris Elliott’s interim review into the horsemeat crisis.

In this exclusive video for FoodManufacture.co.uk Elliott, who is director of the Institute for Global Security at Queen’s University Belfast, said the government were right to ask for more.

“I have had a huge number of meetings across Whitehall and what they are asking me for – and rightfully are asking – for more detail,” Elliott said. “I have given the government a lot more information and detailed plans based on models that I have looked at right around the world.”

More detail and substance

The final review – set to be released within the next month – will add a lot more detail and substance to Elliott’s interim report, he said.

Elliott has made his recommendations on a systems-based approach, meaning if all of the suggestions are not followed none of them will work, he claimed.

Watch this video to find out what mistakes Elliott identified food firms had made to open themselves up to fraud, why they need to start sharing intelligence and what he wants to see happen when his report is published.

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1 comment

Time for Government to Wake Up

Posted by Jim Flynn, 22 May 2014 - 15:11 GMT

You have applauded Chris Elliott for that staunch stance taken.

He is right when he says that government and industry need to agree on the way forward and do it quickly. Two to three years for full implementation however for all of the recommendations to be implemented is ambitious.

We implemented HACCP in 1995 and did the last major roll out to catering food businesses in 2006 and the industry is still struggling with this requriement.

Elliott also mentions that verification is key to eliminating food fraud and this is absolutely correct but the verification should not be by DNA testing or isotope testing alone, these would just be a 'finger in the dike'. Real verification is about really knowing what's going on in your supply chain and it's this that will be interesting because that actually requires companies to share information 'warts and all'.

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