The head of a food watchdog has warned expanding the European Union could increase risks to health.

Sir John Krebs, head of the Food Standards Agency warned it could be harder to regulate food products in a wider EU, and that there was an increased risk of illegal imports into the UK.

It was announced in December that 10 extra countries would be brought into the EU, mainly from Eastern Europe.

Prospective new members

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The enlarged EU could cover as many as 450m citizens.

In a speech to food experts in London on Tuesday, Sir John said: "European enlargement, now firmly on the horizon, will bring consumer benefits, but also possibly new risks.

"There are food-processing plants in the new member states that do not meet EU standards, and they will have to be upgraded or closed."

Secure supplies

But he warned upgrading would take some time, during which products which did comply with standards would have to be separated from those which did not.

He added: "This will create opportunities for accidental mixing or fraud, which in turn could erode consumer confidence if and when it is uncovered.

"Within the European framework, regulators will play their part, but industry will have to be vigilant in checking its sources to ensure safety and standards are upheld."

Sir John said the expansion of the EU would also increase the chances of illegal imports coming in to the UK.

UK importers will have a major responsibility for ensuring the security of their supply chains Sir John Krebs

"Eighty-seven new inspection points at the external borders will have to be created to check legal imports and to stop illegal imports slipping through from countries outside.

"The borders of other member states are our borders, so simply enhancing out UK import controls will not help."

He said: "Public authorities will check as much as they can, but given the scale and complexity of what will be taking place, UK importers will have a major responsibility for ensuring the security of their supply chains."

'Fortress Britain'

Sir John said one theory about the source of the foot and mouth epidemic was that the virus could have been brought into the UK on illegally imported meat.

But he said: "The appropriate response to these risks, whether to animal or human health, is not to try to create 'fortress Britain', with the barriers manned to keep out imports.

"Rather, it is to be better equipped, as other countries in Europe affected by the epidemic seemed to be, to stamp out problems when they arise and to more effectively manage any risks that might be present."