Food Standards Agency says it was wrong to clear Scunthorpe plant of any failings, as more workers make dirty poultry claims. Felicity Lawrence and Andrew Wasley report The government’s food watchdog has been forced to admit that an initial inquiry which cleared one of the UK’s largest poultry processing plants of hygiene failings was misleading. Instances […]

Chicken factories inspected by FSA following hygiene claims
Sources reveal measures being taken to clean up production, but company denies allegations of food safety failings. Felicity Lawrence and Andrew Wasley report The chicken factories at the centre of revelations over food poisoning contamination were checked by Food Standards Agency inspectors on Friday, as sources reported that Tesco auditors had found failings during a […]

Revealed: poultry industry’s dirty secret
By Felicity Lawrence, Andrew Wasley and Radu Ciorniciuc Three of the UK’s leading supermarkets have launched emergency investigations into their chicken supplies after a Guardian investigation uncovered a catalogue of alleged hygiene failings in the poultry industry. Undercover footage, photographic evidence and information from whistleblowers has revealed how strict industry hygiene standards to prevent the […]

Is this the real cost of glyphosate & GM animal feed?
Much of our meat and dairy produce is made from animals raised on GM feeds. But alarming new claims suggest that the GM diet is impacting on animal health – prompting fears over food safety for consumers . Andrew Wasley reports At first glance the frozen bundles could be mistaken for conventional joints of meat. But as […]

Farmers against fracking challenge Romania’s dash for gas
The unspoilt pastoral landscape of Transylvania is the latest battlefield in the war against aggressive fossil energy extraction. Jim Wickens reports on the farming communities fighting back against multinational energy companies. “Do you think they’re about to have sex?”, one of the group whispers. I’m in Transylvania, crouched in the bushes with a bunch of […]

How ‘ag gag’ laws target those exposing horrors of factory farming
Faced with threats, gagging laws and even violence, journalists and activists investigating the secrets of the global food industry tread a dangerous path. Andrew Wasley reports The call came early in the end. Around seven. We were on, our contact said. Tonight was the night. We’d been waiting most of the day after last night’s […]

Fracking ‘poses risk’ to UK farm animals and food safety
US researchers behind a study that showed links between gas drilling and sickness in livestock say a moratorium should be imposed on fracking in the UK until its impact on food safety can be assessed. Andrew Wasley reports The painting, propped up hastily on the roadside, depicts an alarming scene: a menacing, dark-haired man about […]

Sumatran elephants suffer in the palm oil gold rush
Western consumers are inadvertently driving the Sumatran elephant to extinction by eating, washing and wearing – in cosmetics – the derivatives of a fruit that is destroying the animal’s last remaining forest habitat. Jim Wickens reports Everyday we read about the tragic death of another African elephant slaughter, the world watching in horror at the […]

‘Dissident’ farmers speak out against UK badger cull
A growing number of farmers are now questioning the nature of the cull and its effectiveness. And some are blaming poor biosecurity and intensive farming for the spread of TB in the UK cattle herd. Andrew Wasley and Sarah Stirk report To passers-by, the red-brown earthy mound rising up from the path would probably warrant […]