Ed Miliband says he's 'not into' chlorinated chicken amid push for US trade deal vowing ministers will 'protect farmers'
Ed Miliband has told LBC he would not eat chlorinated chicken, even if it were included in a US trade deal.
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The Energy Secretary told LBC's Nick Ferrari he's "not into chlorinated chicken" and wants to protect British farmers from the possible effects of a deal.
It comes with Rachel Reeves in Washington for talks with Donald Trump's administration. The Chancellor said on Wednesday that she remained hopeful of an agreement.
Mr Trump has suggested Britain could buy more US chlorine-washed chicken in return for lower tariffs. The UK currently faces a 10% import tax on all goods sold to the US.
Chlorinated chicken has been a controversial aspect of a mooted trade deal with the US for several years.
The US wants to sell more of its agricultural products, but chlorinated chicken has been banned in the EU and the UK for decades.
Many in the food industry consider the practice could serve to mask poor animal welfare and hygiene standards - and there are also concerns about the impact on the UK's farmers of adding more imports to the market.
Mr Miliband said on Thursday that he was not in favour of chlorinated chicken and said that the government would seek to "protect" farmers.
He told Nick: "The key criteria for any trade deal is does it benefit Britain?
"And that's what the Chancellor [and] the Business Secretary will be focused on. I think they probably will be less interested for a whole range of reasons in my eating habits."
Mr Trump has previously said Britain should be eating more US food.
The White House said: “The UK maintains non-science-based standards that severely restrict US exports of safe, high-quality beef and poultry products.”
The US has long argued that washing meat in chemicals reduces the risk imposed to humans by pathogens - including salmonella. The EU and UK disagree.
Ms Reeves told LBC yesterday that she is "confident" of a US trade deal - but she won't "rush it".
The Chancellor insisted that it is "important we get the right deal for Britain".
Earlier this year, the president said he was confident a trade deal between the two countries could be done "very quickly".
Ministers hope it will offset the 10% tariffs Trump slapped on goods earlier this month - which are expected to slow down Britain's economy.
Ms Reeves insisted that she wanted a deal that was in the "national interest".
The Chancellor told LBC from Washington: "I'm confident that there is a deal to be done between the UK and the US.
"It's very clear, I'm in the US now, that the US administration as well want to do a deal with the UK, but it's important that we get the right deal for Britain, that we don't rush into a deal, but we do the right deal in our British national interest.
"I recognise the huge challenges that businesses, including in the automotive sector, are facing at the moment, which is why, as a government, we announced more flexibilities for our car manufacturers on the shift to electric vehicles to better support them through these challenging times.
"It's also why we are working as hard as we can to get a deal with the United States, a deal that is in our country's national interest."