Andrew Turner is the latest to join a campaign to save thousands of vitamin and mineral food supplements being banned in the UK by an EU directive.
Across the UK, the campaign called ‘Time Is Running Out’ has been unveiled by Consumers for Health Choice (CHC).
The campaigners say that the EU directive will mean thousands of vitamins and minerals will be banned from chemists, supermarkets and healthfood shops in other than meaningless doses.
Andrew Turner said “The EU Food Supplements Directive will severely restrict consumer choice. This is a prime example of Europe meddling needlessly in our affairs. Nobody is suggesting that these vitamin and mineral products are unsafe. Many people have taken them for years and rely on them for all sorts of things. I fear that if this goes ahead there will be health store closures and job losses. Hundreds of Islanders have contacted me about this issue in recent years and I will continue to fight for them to keep the right to take the supplements they want.”
Many of these vitamins and minerals have been safely taken at higher doses for years by those looking for relief for tiredness, SAD syndrome, colds, PMT and restless leg syndrome.
Chris Whitehouse, Director of Strategy for the CHC campaign to save supplements said:
“We do feel very let down. The Food Standards Agency was instructed to fight our corner in Brussels; they accept that our supplements are safe – yet they have failed to speak up for British people. As things stand, doses of all vitamins and all minerals could be reduced to meaningless amounts to appease countries such as France and Germany who wish to control the market. Such an outcome would be catastrophic.
“The official view of EU regulators remains that the destruction of the British industry is an acceptable price to pay for harmonizing the market across all Member Stares. That is outrageous yet our Government is allowing it to happen. Gordon’s Government should wake up, keep its promises and block this burdensome and meddlesome legislation. We will make this a General Election issue; perhaps that will help concentrate their minds.”
