To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent by the NHS on food in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03; how much food was wasted in each of those years; and if he will make a statement. [129364]

The information requested is not routinely collected.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent on food by his Department and by each agency for which it is responsible in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03; what proportion of that food by value was produced in the United Kingdom; what guidance he has issued to encourage the procurement of home-grown food; and if he will make a statement. [129377]

Expenditure on food relates to hospitality, working lunches and refreshments supplied at meetings. Available information from the Department of Health and its Agencies is shown in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans the Government has to introduce central enforcement of breaches of food legislation. [130121]

Local and central Government are responsible for different aspects of food law enforcement. However, most enforcement work is undertaken by local authority environmental health and trading standards departments. I am advised by the Food Standards Agency that there are no plans to change these arrangements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the bacterial infections which caused death from food poisoning in each year since 1997, indicating the (a) number and (b) percentage in each category. [127344]

The Public Health Laboratory Service, now the Health Protection Agency, carried out a detailed study of all statistics on foodborne disease in order to calculate reliable estimates of the true burden of indigenously acquired foodborne disease and deaths. These estimates exclude foodborne infections acquired abroad and infections acquired by other routes such as person to person. Annual data for 1997 to 2000 are shown in the table. Data for 2001 onwards are not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what percentage of the target to reduce foodborne disease is made up of food poisoning caused by (a) salmonella, (b) campylobacter, (c) clostridium perfringens, (d) E.coli 0157 and (e) listeria; [130069](2) how many deaths were caused by

In the baseline year, 2000, the percentage of the target accounted for by each organism was:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions his Department has had with other countries (a) in the EU and (b) outside the EU on food safety. [130071]

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is responsible for food safety issues. It frequently discusses many aspects of food safety, on the basis of European Commission proposals and in scientific exchanges, with all other European Union member states. In addition, FSA officials have met counterparts from the 10 countries which are preparing to join the EU on 1 May next year as well as from many other countries. The discussions, at various levels, have ranged over many items of mutual interest, including: development of food safety and consumer-related policies; risk management and current legislative programmes; communication of risk; building relationships between food authorities; methods of scientific analysis; research and development; and inspection and food law enforcement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government is taking to ensure that salmonella in eggs is strictly controlled. [130074]

The key intervention is the statutory on-farm control programme for breeding flocks. All layer breeding flocks must be monitored at regular intervals for the presence of Salmonella. Any flock infected with Salmonella Enteriditis or Salmonella Typhimurium is compulsorily slaughtered. Ministers at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) are responsible for these controls. The Government will also be supporting new European Union proposals aimed at controlling salmonella pathogens of public health significance in poultry and other farm animals, including egg layer flocks.Statutory measures are complemented by voluntary codes of practice published by DEFRA, which industry has incorporated into their own salmonella controls.The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has issued advice to caterers and consumers on the safe handling, storage and consumption of eggs. This advice is published on the FSA's website at http://www.food.gov.uk/safereating/foodadvice/eggs2002advice

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what systems are required to be in place to ensure that the risk of contamination from food-borne microorganisms is minimised during slaughter. [130075]

Current European Union meat hygiene rules contain detailed requirements for the structure and operation of slaughterhouses and require all slaughterhouse operators to implement and maintain hazard analysis critical control point-based programmes to prevent, eliminate or reduce hazards to acceptable levels. Red meat slaughterhouse operators are required to carry out microbiological testing of carcasses to verify that their controls are working. The legislation is enforced in Great Britain by the Meat Hygiene Service, an executive agency of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and in Northern Ireland by the Department for Agriculture and Rural Development veterinary service on behalf of the FSA.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to ensure that staff working with food are aware of the need to wash their hands after visiting the lavatory; and what further steps his Department is planning to take to ensure the highest levels of personal hygiene are maintained by staff working for organisations involved with the handling of food. [130076]

Staff working with food must, by law, maintain high standards of personal hygiene and be supervised to ensure that they work hygienically. These requirements are enforced by local food authorities.Effective hand washing is important in preventing contamination of food and the spread of food poisoning bacteria in catering premises and in the domestic setting. To help reinforce this message, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) has run a high profile nationwide campaign targeting the catering industry with material stressing the importance of staff working with food washing their hands after visiting the lavatory. Further advice on how to clean and dry hands, is available on the FSA website at www.foodstandards.gov.uk

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will set out the main criteria of the hazard analysis and critical control point system; [130072](2) when he expects the hazard analysis and critical control point system to be extended to all food businesses under EU legislation; and whether his Department has evaluated the effects of implementing the HACCP system to other food businesses not currently included. [130073]

Hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP) is a risk-based system designed to control food safety hazards inherent in food production. The main criteria of the HACCP system are set out in the Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs) which consider the effects of the proposed new legislation.The date of implementation of the consolidated European Union food hygiene legislation is not yet decided. Negotiations under the co-decision procedure are continuing, however, the Council has agreed a formula under which the new legislation would apply from 1 January 2006, or 18 months after coming into force, whichever is the later.The latest versions of these can be found on the Food Standards Agency website at: www.food.gov.uk/foodindustry/regulation/europeleg/eufoodhygieneleg/six

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government are taking to ensure that food manufacturers provide information that is not misleading. [130175]

It is an offence under current legislation for anyone to label food in a manner that could be misleading. In support of this legislation, the Food Standards Agency has produced guidance for manufacturers on a number of aspects of labelling, such as country of origin and the use of terms such as 'fresh', `pure' and 'natural'. In addition, proposed legislation on the use of nutrition and health claims on food labels is currently being discussed in Brussels.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many food samples were submitted for testing by local authorities in England in 1996. [130963]

A total of 175,096 food samples were taken for testing by local authorities in England in 1996.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the costs are for the testing of a food sample by (a) a local authority public analyst, (b) a private sector public analyst and (c) the Food Standards Agency's laboratory at York. [130965]

Costs for the analysis of food samples vary greatly depending on the food type and the analyses being carried out. As such, an average cost is not available.