The EU meaning of "level playing field" is very different from the WTO. If it wasn't there would be no need for the EU to mention it.
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Making trade work for all implies that we also address concerns around the world that competition in the global economy is not ‘fair’, that it is distorted by market barriers and government actions that favour companies and products that are not necessarily the best. A level playing field in global trade means that all countries and firms compete on an equal footing to offer consumers everywhere the widest possible choice and the best value for money.
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If anything it is the EU that ignores the WTO level playing field by imposing unnecessary conditions. Classic example of that is the ban on chlorinated chicken. The publicly announced reason by the EU is that it was
too safe, in that possible cheaper conditions in the abattoir could be hidden. IE The infection levels in the final product were so low, you couldn't tell the difference between that and a higher standard abattoir. That would also mean the infection level from a higher standard abattoir would be
even better than current levels if they used the chlorinated process.
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On chlorine-washed chicken, Mr Johnson said the process was the same as that used by EU farmers to treat their fruit and vegetables.
Describing it as a "public safety no-brainer", he insisted it was the most effective and economical way of dealing with "potentially lethal" bacteria such as salmonella and campylobacter.
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President of the UK's National Farmer's Union (NFU) Minette Batters said that while Mr Johnson was correct in saying chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-fed beef was "safe" to eat, there were other factors that needed considering.
"The difference is welfare standards and environmental protection standards," she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
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It's not consuming chlorine itself that the EU is worried about - in fact in 2005 the European Food Safety Authority said that "exposure to chlorite residues arising from treated poultry carcasses would be of no safety concern". Chlorine-rinsed bagged salads are common in the UK and other countries in the EU.
But the EU believes that relying on a chlorine rinse at the end of the meat production process could be a way of compensating for poor hygiene standards - such as dirty or crowded abattoirs.
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