Chlorinated chicken.... Finger Lickin Bad!

Chlorinated chicken explained: why do the Americans treat their poultry with chlorine?


Chlorine treatment is safe to use, say US regulators - but there is a lot of resistance to the idea in Europe

Trade secretary Liam Fox has everyone in a right old flap after reportedly suggesting the UK might be open to accepting US chicken treated with chlorine in order to secure a lucrative transatlantic trade deal.

Fox’s reported comments – revealed by The Daily Telegraph – have been downplayed by the Department for International Trade, which said: “Specific agricultural issues are a long way down the road and are not being discussed at this stage.”

Concerns the UK may have to accept lower standards on imported meat as part of any post-Brexit trade deals have been rising ever since last year’s EU referendum.

But just what is so-called chlorinated chicken? And why is it something that exists in the US but not over here?


What is chlorinated chicken?


Chlorinated chicken – or chlorine-treated chicken – refers to chicken that has been treated with antimicrobial rinses in order to remove harmful bacteria. These rinses are often referred to as Pathogen Reduction Treatments (PRTs) in the US.

After the birds are slaughtered and the carcases eviscerated, they are examined and then undergo a “final washing procedure”, where chemicals are applied as a spray or wash on the processing line, “or as an addition to the water used to lower the carcase temperature”.

Why is it used in the US?

https://www.thegrocer.co.uk/food-safety/chlorinated-chicken-explained-why-do-the-americans-treat-their-poultry-with-chlorine/555618.article