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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 21 Nov 2000

Vol. 526 No. 3

Adjournment Debate. - Bovine Diseases.

Dr. Upton

The recent Phillips report in the UK on BSE has served to highlight the cost of secrecy and paternalism. That report was 16 volumes long, took two and a half years to complete and cost £27 million. In the UK more than 80 people have died so far from new variant CJD. Millions of cattle have been slaughtered and it has cost the beef industry in the order of £4 billion. Above all else, the Phillips report emphasises the cost of secrecy, the inability to communicate and the paternalistic approach of Ministers, civil servants and scientists alike as far as the public is concerned. It is against that background that it is crucial the public is kept informed of the status of BSE and new variant CJD, the measures agreed to deal with BSE, how these are implemented and who will take responsibility for that implementation.

Despite repeated assurances that Ireland has a very effective plan for dealing with BSE, the numbers of reported cases continue to increase annually and, this year, the numbers were the highest to date. The continued use of meat and bonemeal after the ban was imposed in 1990 plus the long incubation period for BSE are two factors which are considered to have contributed to that continuing increase. It is important that the full testing of livestock intended for slaughter should now be introduced without delay in Ireland. The health of the population as well as the security of the export meat trade will be targets for speculation and uncertainty unless a comprehensive and reliable testing programme is in place.

The issue of the disposal of carcases must be addressed. Within the guidelines proposed by the EU, it will be impossible to cope with the disposal of carcases if the current system continues. The recent reports of carcases being buried close to a water supply is an indication of the inadequacy of the current system. While that has now changed and interim measures are in place to hold suspect or infected carcases in cold storage, that cannot be allowed continue indefinitely. Leaving aside the need for a facility to store carcases, the Minister needs to provide a safe means of final disposal. If we are to have confidence in the system which deals with the disposal of BSE infected carcases, the issue of incineration must be re-examined.

The origins of BSE are traceable to contaminated animal feed which worked its way in ever increasing circles into the food chain. The practice of feeding bovine protein to cows sparked a chain letter type effect of BSE in cattle and variant CJD in humans in the UK. In the UK also, misleading assurances and incorrect extrapolations led to what can be described as mismanagement, misuse, misinterpretation and miscommunication of science. There are too many unknowns in BSE and a commitment must be made to substantial research investment so that developments can be monitored and understood as they pertain to Ireland.

The European Union has set out recommendations for animal feed. In Ireland, mammalian meat and bonemeal may not be fed to cattle, sheep, goats or deer. However, it can still be manufactured under licence and may be kept on land or premises where there are ruminants provided the storage is licensed. Statements such as "persons who store or transport mammalian meat and bone meal shall take all necessary precautions to ensure that it does not contaminate any other product" do not inspire confidence. Knowing the history of meat and bonemeal in the BSE disaster, it is naive or worse to allow any mammalian meat and bonemeal into the food chain. Its manufacture should be stopped now. We also know at this stage that BSE crosses the species barrier and that is a further reason to reconsider the use of any mammalian meat and bonemeal.

The role of the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development in monitoring and ensuring food safety should be reviewed. It is not appropriate that the Department with responsibility for the marketing and promotion of live animals and meat should, at the same time, have responsibility for ensuring safety within the human food chain. The possibility that one infected cow could infect 400,000 people is stark. For this reason, it is urgent that testing of all animals intended for slaughter be introduced. BSE, as well as crossing the species barrier, has crossed national boundaries and the health and trade consequences are now being experienced. National discussions are no longer adequate to deal with this problem and, while I welcome the co-ordination and enforcement recommended by Commissioner Byrne, it needs to go further.

After a protracted debate on the issue on 20 and 21 November, the Minister and his colleagues in the Council of Ministers agreed a series of conclusions regarding recent developments on BSE. The Council's intention was to provide the necessary levels of consumer protection and to re-establish a Community approach on this sensitive issue in the light of unilateral measures recently taken by a number of member states. As the Deputy will be aware, consumer confidence had been dented by recent events in France, in particular, where there has been an increase in cases this year.

The Council also welcomed the Commission's proposal to extend rapid screening tests for bovines at risk from the beginning of next year and, in the light of the results of that programme, to extend it to categories of bovines aged over 30 months. In addition, Commission proposals to exclude certain products of animal origin from the animal feed chain were considered.

In Ireland we had already embarked upon a programme of rapid testing of bovine animals in advance of the Commission requirement to do so. In light of recent events on the Continent, I welcome the Commission proposals to expand the requirement for testing and on animal feed, and I will lend my full support for any measures required to provide further consumer protection.

Of most significance in this debate is the need to protect human health and, in this regard, the Council emphasised the wide range of measures already in place to control BSE and noted the importance of effective implementation of these measures. In Ireland, we already have a broad range of measures for the control and eradication of BSE which exceeds EU and OIE standards in a number of respects. These include the requirement for compulsory notification of the disease, the slaughter and destruction of suspect animals and their herd and birth cohorts, the removal and destruction of specified risk materials from all cattle and sheep and a strictly enforced licensing and control regime for the control of the production, sale and storage of meat and bonemeal.

In this regard, it should be noted that the conclusion of the geographical risk assessment of states commissioned by the European Commission and endorsed by its scientific steering committee earlier this year was that Ireland's control system was "optimally stable". This means that all three main stability factors, feeding, rendering and SRM removal, are in place, well controlled, implemented and audited. Very few countries have achieved this high level of stability. I am confident this independent endorsement of the Irish controls gives consumers of Irish beef at home and abroad every reason to have confidence in the quality and safety of Irish beef.

Side by side with the consumer protection aspects, the current difficult and uncertain market situation must also be addressed. In this regard the Minister has impressed upon Commissioner Fischler the need for appropriate action to support the market. Specifically, he has asked that export refunds be increased to ensure exporting countries, such as Ireland, remain competitive on third country markets. The current difficulties have arisen as a result of a loss of confidence in the product and, unless this is addressed, no amount of market support will suffice.

In the meantime, I am happy to support the Council's broad endorsement of the Commission's proposals for additional testing and on fallen animals. Discussions are continuing on the details of the Commission proposals. I assure the Deputy that my officials will be fully engaged over coming days in the discussions with the Commission to ensure that the decisions of Council are put into effect in such a way as to restore full confidence in beef throughout the EU in the shortest possible time.

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