asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries if his Department have investigated the desirability of manufacturing fish flour or fish protein concentrate for export to countries where people now lack protein in their diets; and if in view of the fact that the Food and Drug Administration in the USA have found this fish product to be safe for human consumption he will make a general statement as to whether such a manufacturing process would increase the outlets for locally caught fish and would enable this country to make high protein content food available cheaply to underdeveloped countries.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Manufacture of Fish Products.
26.
My Department have been following with interest developments abroad towards the production for human consumption of a wholesome and acceptable fish protein concentrate — also known as fish flour — but as far as I am aware, production on a commercial scale for human consumption has not so far been undertaken in America or in Europe. The Food and Drug Administration in the USA have subject to certain stringent requirements, recently approved of the use in human diets of fish protein concentrate made from whole fish, but while the costs of producing, distribution and selling the product have been projected they have not yet been commercially proved. Production in Ireland would essentially be a matter for private enterprise but both my Department and An Bord Iascaigh Mhara will be only too pleased to give anybody interested in setting up a factory here all the information at our disposal as to the present stage of development of the process.
Could the Minister say whether a factory producing fish meal could use certain types of fish or certain portions of fish at one and the same time to produce the type of human protein mentioned in this question?
There is no doubt that this very high protein concentrate can and is physically capable of being produced. Apparently it has, in fact, been produced in some other countries and the claim is that it can be made from whole fish, not just any selected fish or any selected parts of selected fish. The whole question at the moment would appear to be whether it is commercially a useful undertaking. My personal information on this is that it has not been commercially proved. We had a discussion on it with a gentleman from the US who has been interested in this for some time. He believes it can be commercially done and he is doing the animal concentrate at the moment. He feels that this is quite a big thing in the future, particularly for those hungry countries, the countries in which there is a shortage of food. The information I have from this particular individual would indicate that it can be done — he was quite enthusiastic about its potentialities — but our official information is that so far it is not commercially proved.
When the Minister talks about commercial possibilities, does he mean a sales outlet? That is the impression I got. That is why I ask could it be done as a fish meal project.
No. It probably could, although that is rather technical. Food regulations are involved. When I speak of the commercial possibilities, I mean the commercial aspect of it, not whether there is a market for it.
Questions Nos. 27 and 28 postponed.