Some legal restric tions on exports of live cattle within the EU were lifted on 19 April in respect of Ireland and on 30 April in respect of the 10 kilometre exclusion zone in County Louth. There are other issues relating to the transport of animals through member states and to the specific guarantees required by importing veterinary authorities which remain to be resolved. With regard to livestock exports to third countries and while the import requirements are a matter strictly for the country in question, the situation generally is subject to OIE guidelines. These stipulate, as a minimum, a three month period free of foot and mouth disease before disease free status can be restored. Assuming that no further outbreaks occur in Ireland, we will recover our disease free OIE status on 22 June next.
My Department is in contact with our various markets with a view to the earliest possible resumption of the live trade.
On pigmeat, important markets in the United States and Japan were lost due to the outbreak of foot and mouth disease. While every effort is being made to reopen those markets, and contacts have already taken place, much will depend on Ireland recovering its international disease free status towards the end of June. As regards milk products, my Department together with the Department of Foreign Affairs has succeeded in having export restrictions lifted in all key export markets. Any outstanding bans on Irish dairy products will be tackled in a similar manner to ensure normal trade flows are resumed.
The only beef export market affected by the recent FMD crisis was Russia. The majority of our non-European markets had been closed to Irish beef exports as a result of the BSE crisis in Europe late last year. The task of recovering those markets is based very much on a restoration of confidence in the safety of our product and, with that in mind, my Department has been in ongoing contact or in correspondence with the relevant authorities in those countries which have been significant markets for Irish beef to point out to them the level and effectiveness of the controls in place in Ireland.