Europe rejects US chlorinated chicken, citing food safety concerns

(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump is pushing for more countries to import meat and poultry from America, but Europeans have long pointed to food safety concerns over U.S. chicken washed in chlorine.

Jonathan Reynolds, the U.K. business secretary, recently told Sky News the country will “never change” its food standards when asked if “chlorinated chicken was on the table or off the table” during trade talks.

The move comes after the European Union and the United Kingdom failed to avoid Trump’s sweeping tariffs, in which the United States imposed a 20% tax on EU imports and a 10% tax on all U.K. imports.

“The U.K. maintains non-science-based standards that severely restrict U.S. exports of safe, high-quality beef and poultry products,” the White House said in a statement.

In the U.S., chicken is sometimes treated with a chemical rinse, like chlorine, to kill bacteria before it’s exported.

The U.S. does not require processors to disclose whether their chicken has been chemically washed, creating an apparent transparency gap between American and European food standards.

What is chlorinated chicken?

Chlorinated chicken, or chlorine-washed chicken, refers to poultry that is washed or dipped in water containing chlorine to kill bacteria, such as E. coli and salmonella, according to the National Chicken Council.

Though the method has been deemed safe by the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Agriculture, critics argue it could encourage lower hygiene standards earlier in the production process.

According to the National Chicken Council, less than 5% of U.S. poultry processing plants use chlorine in sprays or rinses, and most chlorine use in the industry is for cleaning equipment, not the meat itself.

Why aren’t European farmers using chlorinated chicken?

The EU first banned chlorine-washed chicken in 1997.

European regulators allow chicken to be washed only with water or substances approved by the European Commission.

Additionally, they require “pre-harvest interventions” for poultry. Vaccinations or additives to chicken feed are used as safety measures instead of eliminating pathogens after the product is processed.

Is chlorinated chicken safe?

While U.S. agencies consider chlorinated chicken safe, the European Commission warns consuming large amounts, equal to 5% of your body weight, could expose consumers to unsafe levels of chlorate.

“Long-term exposure to chlorate in food, particularly in drinking water, is a potential health concern for children, especially those with mild or moderate iodine deficiency,” according to the European Food Safety Authority.

Although the agency reports chemical substances in meat are unlikely to pose an immediate or acute health risk for consumers, some studies raise other concerns.

Consumer Reports found in 2014 that 97% of 300 U.S. chicken breasts contained salmonella, E. coli and campylobacter and that nearly half contained antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

A 2018 study from the University of Southampton found that chlorine washing was not completely effective in killing pathogens on fresh vegetables. The study suggested chlorinating foods “can make foodborne pathogens undetectable” rather than eliminating them.