Meat sales have plunged by a third in Poland, and a meat producers’ lobby is blaming irresponsible media reports for what it perceives as a completely unwarranted and devastating consumer panic.
The AgrobiznesKlub Association pointed out that there has not been a single case of BSE or its human equivalent vCJD in Poland, and that media reports of the disease have been highly exaggerated.
Board members of the AgrobiznesKlub are now suggesting that the industry and food safety institutions co-operate with the media. They also called for heavy investment in raising standards at those processing plants that still fail to meet EU standards. The costs of this operation could be spread between authorities, producers and consumers.