Summary
Donald Trump warned the UK must accept chlorinated US chicken imports if it wants relief from new 10% tariffs on British exports.
The U.K. has long reaffirmed its commitment to maintaining high food standards, with polling showing 80% of Britons oppose a ch imports.
Critics argue chlorinated chicken stems from poorer production hygiene, with studies showing high bacteria rates in US chicken.
Farming advocates warn a US trade deal with lower standards would be “devastating for British farming.”
Studies have shown that washing food in chlorine doesn’t actually work as US authorities think. It can put the bacteria into a survival state called VBNC, viable but non-culturable. This means labs cannot culture the bacteria to test for its presence, but it is present and can still cause illness. It hides the problem, allowing for lower safety practices in favor of productivity and profit. Here is one such study: https://journals.asm.org/doi/full/10.1128/mbio.00540-18
All you need to do to not need the chlorine wash is to not treat the animals so badly that they shit all over each other due to lack of space. Improve their welfare improve the product, but no. Dollars come first.
Or just like, I dunno, don’t undercook your chicken?
The problem with most bacteria isn’t that they cause foodborne illnesses (what cooking prevents) but that there are dangerous byproducts created by them, which often are not destroyed by cooking.
Or don’t eat animals
How is it even legal for the US to wash chicken with Chlorine ? Sounds like so ridiculous.
Companies pay loads of money to politicians to have them change the health and safety laws so they can make even more money. It’s a time-honored American tradition.
This one time, some dude bought his own president for just over $250 million
