Vol. 444 No. 3
36 Mr. O'Malley asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry if his attention has been drawn to the presence of fake consignments of a potato variety in supermarkets; and the measures, if any, he will take to protect the good name of Irish-bred varieties.
57 Ms O'Donnell asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry if his attention has been drawn to the presence of fake consignments of a potato variety in supermarkets; and the measures, if any, he will take to protect the good name of Irish-bred varieties.
I propose to take Questions No. 36 and 57 together.
My Department has been aware of this problem for some time. Definite varietal identification can only be made at the growing stage. In order that such identification can be made samples of the suspect material have been drawn at various outlets — both wholesale and retail — and have been planted in official trial plots. A decision regarding further action will be taken when positive identification becomes possible.
