A week ago Waitrose emailed me to wish me a good weekend and to say they were looking into the inaccurate health warning on the game meat they are selling to the public. Another week and no change in Waitrose’s position as far as I know. I contacted Waitrose nearly three weeks ago and I wasn’t the first to raise this issue with them.
Waitrose – I am disappointed by your tardy response. You got yourselves into this mess (and I do wonder whence you sought advice – not from the game shooting industry I trust!) and the longer you take to address this issue the worse you look.
You know that your health warning is wrong and yet you continue to sell game in your stores with an inaccurate health warning. The recommendation of NHS England is;
It’s best to avoid eating game that has been shot with lead pellets while you’re pregnant, as it may contain higher levels of lead.
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/foods-to-avoid-pregnant/
The Food Standards Agency says:
Exposure to lead can harm the developing brain and nervous system. So cutting down the amount of lead-shot game eaten is especially important for: toddlers, children, pregnant women and women trying for a baby
https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/lead-shot-game
That’s not what your health warning says is it, Waitrose?
I’m quite hopeful precisely because of the delay, rather than concerned about the delay. I believe that Waitrose may not be happy about the responses it receives from suppliers.
Rather I believe it is perfectly possible that if their suppliers cannot provide lead free birds (and in the UK the Lead Ammunition Group confirms in 2018 that even birds shot over water are not free from lead) that Waitrose, a principled Supermarket, may decide to forgo UK shot birds.
That would be an excellent result for your campaign, Mark, and puts pressure on the suppliers to insist that certified lead free birds be available to the likes of Waitrose.
Not very likely, I admit, as shooters would miss their weekly dose of lead shot, which they, DEFRA, Therese Coffey and NE, seem perfectly happy to endure as the Government recently informed Lord Krebs after he questioned the fate of the 2018 report.
When they have sorted that out could you ask them to unblock whatever is blocking the culvert between their Salisbury carpark and the Gasworks stream so that we can get out of our car? It’s been three days now. Thanks.
Oh and ask them to stop wrapping meat in plarstic – I so hate the taste of pthalates in the mornings