Haggis has been banned in the US for 40 years, because its food safety department prohibits the use of sheep lungs in food products. In an effort to overturn the ban, Scottish rural affairs secretary Richard Lochhead invited a delegation of American politicians to Scotland.
He raised the matter with US authorities last year and said he hoped to persuade the delegation that “it’s time to allow imports to resume”, adding that the US was a “potentially lucrative market” that could be “worth millions” to Scottish haggis producers.
Lochhead said: “We want to capitalise on the diaspora of Scots in the US, and many of them would enjoy the opportunity to indulge in authentic Scottish haggis to accompany their neeps and tatties on Burns night.
“Scotland’s produce is among the best in the world and I’ve asked US Department of Agriculture officials to come here to see for themselves the high standards we have in animal health and processing. This will help them realise that our haggis is produced to the highest standards and that it’s time to allow imports to resume.”
What is haggis?
Real Scottish haggis is made with sheep’s ‘pluck’ (heart, liver and lungs). The offal is minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices and salt, mixed with stock and simmered in the animal’s stomach for approximately three hours (most modern commercial haggis is prepared in a casing rather than an actual stomach).
Haggis is traditionally served with ‘neeps’ (turnips) and ‘tatties’ (potatoes) and best washed down with whisky. The famous traveller’s guide Lonely Planet refers to it as ‘extreme cuisine’.
And Burn’s Night?
On 25 January each year, Scots and those of Scottish descent celebrate ‘Scotland’s favourite son’, the poet and lyricist Robert Burns. In 2009, he was voted by the Scottish public as being ‘the Greatest Scot’ through a vote run by Scottish television channel STV.
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