Red Tractor Meat & Poultry Processing Scheme
– 2022 Consultation
The Red Tractor Meat and Poultry Processors Scheme (RTMPP) is part of the Red Tractor Food Assurance Scheme assuring food safety, animal welfare and environmental protection through every part of the food chain.
The standards are written and revised by our Technical Steering Group in consultation with customers, meat and poultry processors and the wider industry to ensure they are clear, meaningful and provide credible assurance for all. This is essential with the increasing demand for traceability of food and growing consumer awareness of animal welfare issues in livestock production and slaughter.
A Modular Scheme
The RTMPP has been developed as a voluntary modular structure. It consists of five modules, and not all members of the scheme are necessarily certified to every module as this depends on our licensing rules and the type of food business a member operates.
| Module | Sectors covered | Modules includes |
| Food Safety | Beef
Lamb Pork Poultry |
Applicable to the production of raw beef, lamb, pork and poultry products and the cutting of cooked meats. Standards cover food safety management, food safety site requirements, (cutting of) cooked meats, third party storage, production and process controls and people. |
| Traceability & Integrity | Beef
Lamb Pork Poultry |
Traceability systems, process controls at abattoirs and cutting plants, product authenticity, traceability of purchased products. |
| Animal Welfare | Beef
Lamb Pork |
Animal welfare at time of killing and vehicle wash facilities. |
| Poultry Welfare | Poultry (Chicken, Turkey & Duck) | Poultry welfare at time of killing and transport wash facilities. |
| Pork Quality | Pork | Assured Pork and Assured Sausages. |
Introducing the consultation
Red Tractor is consulting on its roadmap to deliver leading whole chain assurance. This ambition cannot be achieved by Red Tractor alone, it requires the commitment of the whole UK supply chain. This consultation is important to ensure that the standards which are put in place by Red Tractor for the RTMPP Scheme adequately reflect the requirements of the different organisations that make up the processing supply chain.
Red Tractor standards are the bedrock of progressive food and farming in Britain. They are based on the needs and expectations of consumers, end customers and the food supply chain, encompassing UK legislation, scientific evidence, and best practice. Our standards achieve widespread and continual enhancements on traceability, animal welfare and food safety, and are routinely reviewed to account for evolving demands.
This consultation is tailored towards organisations, rather than individuals. The proposals seek to engage as many organisations as possible to:
- streamline and rationalise standards
- ensure compliance with legislation
- remain relevant whilst seeking to improve standards and provide clarity for all Red Tractor meat processing scheme members
This is an important opportunity to feedback on the proposals on whether they go far enough or not.
This document sets out Red Tractor’s propositions for reforming the standards for each of the modules. The current standards were reviewed in detail by independent food safety and veterinary experts, before proposals were drawn up with the input of an industry working group, which included representatives from meat and poultry processors, National Farmers’ Union for England & Wales (NFU), British Meat Processors Association (BMPA), Association of Independent Meat Suppliers (AIMS), British Veterinary Association (BVA) and retailers.
How to respond
Respondents are encouraged to answer questions using the web survey for some or all of the modules, depending on their context and what is most relevant.
See below for details of the new and revised standards for each module and the web survey link to complete your response.
The consultation will close at 6pm on Friday 3rd June 2022.
What Happens Next
Following the consultation, the new standards will be finalised by the industry working group and approved by the Red Tractor Standards Committee.
The new standards come into effect on 1 November 2022.
If you have any questions about the content of the consultation you can contact the Red Tractor team on consultation@redtractor.org.uk