Farmers have warned Nigel Farage against undermining the UK’s high standards after he said he would agree to allowing American chlorine-washed chicken to be sold in the UK as part of a free trade deal with the US.
It comes as the UK government scrambles to secure a deal to escape 25 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminium, and dodge further reciprocal tariffs which could come into play at the start of next month.
The Reform UK leader, who is a close ally of Donald Trump, said the US president would “want US agricultural products to be sold in Britain” as part of any deal, risking anger from agricultural groups and consumers.
He added: “Now there’s been some concern about chlorine-treated chicken etc, but there is an answer to that which is label things, let consumers decide.
“So I think this shouldn’t be just about avoiding tariffs, it should be a broader deal.”
Asked directly whether he was in favour of allowing chlorine-treated chicken to be sold in the UK, he said: “I would allow consumers in America to buy our products and consumers here to buy their products, and provided we have the right labelling, that’s good.”
While the European Union responded to US protectionism by announcing trade counter-measures and hitting American goods with retaliatory tariffs, the prime minister resisted calls for the UK to immediately hit back.
Instead, British officials are working at pace with their US counterparts to get an economic agreement over the line, which would exempt Britain from the 25 per cent tariffs announced by Mr Trump on Wednesday.
While Chancellor Rachel Reeves has previously ruled out concessions on chlorinated chicken or hormone-injected beef, insisting Labour won’t change their stance, the possibility of a deal has sparked fresh fears that US chlorine-treated chicken could enter UK markets, something the British public has historically been overwhelmingly opposed to.
The last major polling done on the issue, conducted in 2020, revealed that 80 per cent of Britons are opposed to allowing imports to the UK, and the same proportion is also against allowing chicken products that have been farmed using hormones.
There were also concerns about US pesticides, as 79 per cent of people think that importing vegetables grown with pesticides that are illegal in the EU, but legal in the US, would be an unacceptable concession.
Previous prime ministers, including Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, were forced to rule out concessions on chlorinated chicken and hormone-fed beef in future trade deal talks with the US after pressure from the British public.
Liz Webster, founder of Save British Farming, said the British public is “rightly appalled by chlorinated chicken”, warning Mr Farage against trading away the UK’s high standards.
“A US trade deal would be devastating for British farming, food security, public health, animal welfare, and the environment”, she told The Independent.
“Just look at what NAFTA did to Mexican agriculture. Post-Brexit labelling laws are muddled and unclear – and crucially, much of the food served in public institutions and the service sector isn’t labelled at all, despite making up a significant share of our national diet.
“US agriculture is heavily subsidised and relies on intensive, industrial methods – including chemicals and practices banned in the UK.
“The British public is rightly appalled by chlorinated chicken and hormone-fed beef. We are an animal-loving nation that values high standards, and we must not trade them away.”
The Liberal Democrats said Mr Farage has had “the full indoctrination at Mar-a-Lago” after his comments.
Environment spokesman Tim Farron said: “No one in this country wants chlorinated chicken on our supermarket shelves.
“Farage wants to sell out our hard-working British farmers for a grubby trade deal that wouldn’t protect us from Trump’s damaging tariffs. He’s more interested in being a salesman for Trump than standing up for Britain and our rural communities.”
