'The original fast food': Pie and Mash campaign to get 'cracking' meal protected status

A run has been launched to springiness Britain's "cracking" accepted pastry and mash protected status.

The repast - a minced beef pastry and mashed potatoes with a parsley liquor - has truthful acold been "underappreciated" contempt being the "original accelerated food", according to blimpish erstwhile curate Richard Holden.

Mr Holden, who is MP for Basildon and Billericay, and producers person made representations to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) astir an exertion for Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG) presumption for the dish.

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Defra said an exertion for TSG presumption requires statement connected the look that producers would request to travel to usage the sanction successful aboriginal and they volition measure the lawsuit erstwhile a ceremonial exertion is submitted.

Mr Holden, who has written to 40 MPs to effort to rally enactment for his quest, volition pb a parliamentary statement successful Westminster Hall connected Tuesday to further property the lawsuit for the "cracking" products to get the "recognition they deserve".

Mr Holden told PA the repast hailed from London but has made its mode "down the Thames Gateway and retired into the world".

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He besides described however it utilized to beryllium made with eel but erstwhile the Thames stream suffered contamination during the Industrial Revolution, eels were "no longer there" truthful they were replaced with mince.

"The important happening is they kept the liquor from the archetypal eel pie, which is wherefore you've got the parsley condiment due to the fact that traditionally parsley liquor would ever person gone with a food dish," Mr Holden said.

The MP appeared assured helium would triumph successful his origin to get pastry and mash a protected presumption arsenic helium said: "I don't commencement campaigns I can't win."