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All the facts on sizzling meats
Clare Latimer gets the lowdown on British meat straight from Meat and Livestock Commission
DUE to your response on my article about not being able to buy British veal and my butcher not even finding it in Smithfield market I decided to ring the chairman of the Meat and Livestock Commission to get it straight from the horses mouth so to speak.
In the past they have tried to push British veal but there was not enough demand.
The Danish now take our calves and transportation is much improved with checks from RSPCA, vets and animal welfare groups.
The calves are taken in large containers bedded with straw with permanent water to drink and this way they are not loaded on and off boats etc. It is the handling of animals that stresses them.
Also another thing I heard was that the Danish have really pulled their socks up over animal welfare and now they do not have dark crates any more and that is why we have agreed to send our calves there.
Many other countries are still crating but it all coming to an end soon due to EU laws but until then I advise to buy Danish if you can’t buy British.
Another angle is that beef has become so popular and now that export has opened up again after the BSE problem that our British beef is in such demand that we can allow more beef calves to grow older due to demand.
This is the best news really as none of us want to see calves killed at an early age if they can live longer and happier lives.
The supermarket story is also not what I thought. Waitrose comes out the best by a long straw but the commission praise Morrisons who are the only big supermarket to buy cattle whole and have their own abattoir and use all parts of the animal.
Sainsbury’s and Tesco do not buy the fore quarter of the animal, which means to keep the price down they do not give enough to the farmer, which makes their lives almost impossible.
Morrisons even sells bags of bones for 13p, which means that we can go back to making our own stock very easily rather than buying plastic tubs of ready made.
Waitrose use the whole animal and in their case they use the off cuts of the animal that are harder to sell by producing very good ready meals.
I have also noticed that nearly all packed meats in supermarkets now have a photo of the farmer and a brief history about the farm so have a look and choose the bred you get to know and like.
Things have certainly changed and much of that is due to the endless input from the Meat and Livestock Commission.
Hot sausage sandwich
This is a perfect example of choosing the meat and flavourings you like best.
Ingredients
Serves 4
One large red onion, peeled and finely shredded;
One desp caster sugar;
50g butter;
500g pack sausages;
Four white baps.
Method
Put the onion, caster sugar and half the butter into a large frying pan and cook gently over a med heat for about 10 minutes or until the onion is very soft and slightly caramelised. Remove and keep warm. Add the sausages and fry for about 10 minutes turning often to brown on all sides.
Cut the baps in half and spread with the remaining butter and then fill with the onion mix. Cut each sausage lengthways and pile into the baps. Top with the ‘lid’ and squish together. Serve hot.
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