Better Regulation
Regulation is important in the food and drink industry because it protects
workers, consumers and the environment we live in. FDF endorses proportionate
effective regulation to support these ends. But too much inappropriate
regulation
imposes unnecessary costs and administrative burdens on companies – and even
risks
making the industry uncompetitive.
Much of the legislation that impacts our sector originates in the EU and it is
vital that the Government engages early enough in negotiations to influence
outcomes in a way that delivers the objectives of proportionality and
effectiveness
and which does not impact adversely on the UK industry's competitiveness either
within Europe or globally. For this reason, we also urge the Government not to
adopt new legislation early, or to 'gold plate'.
FDF welcomes the increased importance UK policymakers have placed on reducing
the amount of red tape and finding alternatives to regulation. As part of this,
we
hope that Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs accepts the
recommendations made in the recent the Farming Regulation Task Force Report to
remove
over-regulation and concentrate only on areas of real risk.
FDF believes there is a real opportunity to reduce the burden of regulation in
the food and drink sector through more effective enforcement. Both at EU and
national level we have seen a disturbing trend towards hazard-based regulation
and
enforcement. The Government must take a clear stance in favour of a risk-based
approach, and ensure that this is reflected not only in its policy formation
but
in the guidance and training given to enforcement agencies and individual
officers.
More Information
Last reviewed: 16 Jun 2011