Concerns surrounding the UK’s food safety standards have grown recently following post-Brexit trade talks between the UK and the US.

Fears have been raised over food imports of a lower quality standard.

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These are the supermarkets that have pledged never to stock the likes of chlorinated chicken or hormone injected beef on their shelves.

Which supermarkets are pledging against chlorinated chicken?

Various big name supermarkets around the UK have vowed never to sell the likes of hormone injected beef or chlorinated chicken, as consumer concerns grow around UK food quality standards.

These supermarkets include:

  • Aldi
  • Waitrose
  • Co-op
  • M&S
  • Sainsbury’s

Aldi’s chief executive, Giles Hurley, said: “We will never compromise on the standards or specifications of our products, and that includes a commitment to never selling chlorinated chicken or hormone injected beef.

“Britain has some of the highest food quality standards in the world, and our commitment to only source chicken and beef from this country means our customers know they are always buying high quality Aldi products at an unbeatable value.”

Waitrose executive director, James Bailey, added: “Any regression from the standards we have pioneered for the past 30 years, both as a business and a country, would be an unacceptable backwards step.

“We would be closing our eyes to a problem that exists in another part of the world and to animals who are out of our sight and our minds.”

Sue Davies, head of consumer protection at Which? said: “It’s encouraging to see another supermarket recognising that customers really value food produced to our high domestic standards, and making this commitment to ensuring that chlorinated chicken or hormone injected beef will not be stocked on their shelves.

“However, the government should be acting decisively on this issue rather than leaving it to individual businesses to take the lead.”

Why would supermarkets sell these products?

As it stands, chlorinated chicken and hormone injected beef are both illegal in the UK, as they don’t meet our food safety standards.

However, they are legal to sell in the US, and it has been revealed that products like chlorinated chicken and hormone injected beef could be sold in the UK as part of a post-Brexit trade deal with the US.

Last month, it appeared that Boris Johnson had folded on his pledge against chlorinated chicken, as he refused to repeat it at Downing Street.

Sue Davies said, “[The government] must legislate to protect food standards in the Trade Bill or Agriculture Bill, sending a strong signal to trading partners that decades of progress on food safety, quality and animal welfare will not be jeopardised wherever people shop or eat.”

'Public uncomfortable with lower food standards'

In a survey run by Which?, it was found that four out of five people said that they would be uncomfortable eating beef that had been given growth hormones.

Three out of four people were also uncomfortable with eating chlorinated chicken.

In a survey of more than 2,000 people, 74 per cent were opposed to imports of lower quality of food as part of the UK-US trade deal, and 95 per cent of participants said that it is important for the UK to retain its existing food standards.

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However, even if all supermarkets across the UK pledged not to stock these items, the foods would still be present in the catering industry where it would be harder to trace.