asked the Minister for Agriculture the ratio of staff to cattle in relation to staff employed to carry out the Department's inspection of cattle at meat factories; the number of Departmental officers that are employed at a meat plant (details supplied) in County Limerick; the annual cost to the taxpayer in respect of salaries and expenses; the number of cattle per day that are slaughtered in this meat plant.
Written Answers. - Meat Factory Inspections.
521.
The total number of cattle slaughtered in licensed meat export plants in 1983 was 977,357. There are 28 plants licensed.
The Department of Agriculture employ permanent veterinary and lay staff to carry out meat inspection duties. The total number of permanent staff so employed in all meat export plants amounts to 226. This staff is supplemented by a core of temporary veterinary inspectors who are drawn from a panel of up to 600 authorised veterinary practitioners and engaged on a daily fee paid basis as and when required. The number employed on this basis may vary, daily or seasonally, having regard to the level of slaughterings in individual plants. Moreover, some plants deal not only with cattle but also with sheep and pigs. The level or rate of inspection varies from plant to plant having regard to the facilities available and the speed with which the slaughter line may be operated. For the foregoing reasons it would be almost impossible to give a realistic national ratio of cattle slaughtered to staff employed for inspection purposes.
There are four permanent officers of the Department employed at the County Limerick meat plant in question. The number of temporary veterinary inspectors engaged at this plant in 1983 averaged four per week. The annual cost in respect of salaries, fees and expenses is about £96,000. The average number of cattle slaughtered per day of operation of the plant in 1983 was 131.