MCB welcomes Government advice on correct labelling of food from West Bank

The MCB has written to the Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), to congratulate him for issuing clear guidance on how food originating in the West Bank should be labelled.

The guidance issued on 10 December and available on DEFRA’s website requires West Bank produce to be clearly labelled as either Israeli settlement produce or Palestinian produce.

Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari, Secretary General of the MCB, said `All British consumers, regardless of their religion, are entitled to know the origin of the food they consume. That is particularly important when the food comes from such a sensitive area as the West Bank.’

Dr Bari also welcomed the clear restatement in the DEFRA document of our Government’s position that the Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are unlawful under international law since they contravene Article 49 (6) of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, which prohibits an occupying power from transferring its own civilian population into occupied territory.

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Notes to Editors:

The Muslim Council of Britain is the UK’s largest Muslim umbrella body with around 500 affiliated national, regional and local organisations, mosques, charities and schools.

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