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Andy Burnham's new farming minister fainted "at the sight of meat" after becoming unwell during a tour of a beef freezer.
Stephen Morgan, who has been the MP for Portsmouth South since 2017, had been deployed on a tour of British farms and suppliers since the Prime Minister threw together his top team last month.
But the junior minister became embattled by his new briefing in the Lake District when he was shown a refrigerator storage unit at a food processing plant, packed full of raw meat.
"He’d been shown large chunks of beef as well as some steaks but then he felt faint.“He said something like, ‘I don’t feel too well — I need a moment," one farmer told The Sun.
"It’s not a great look for the farming minister to faint at the sight of meat."
The Labour MP explained that he "felt unwell", blaming the change in temperature between the extreme heat and cold storage and thanking those who helped him.
"Hats off to the brilliant people working in these conditions and temperatures to keep the nation fed," he added.
Last week, the Prime Minister unveiled a £65million support package to farmers as the Government ramps up its response to the driest July on record.
Mr Burnham chaired a Cobra meeting where his team focused on ways to respond to the extreme heat, wildfires and drought.
The package has formed part of a wider effort tackling pressures on farming, water supply and infrastructure caused by the prolonged dry spell.
It is designed to assist farmers with watering crops, feeding livestock where grass has died and continue environmental agreements without losing payments.
