Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 6 October 2009
1038 Deputy Arthur Morgan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the criteria in place in order that an agrifood company can label and market its products as Irish; the percentage of Irish raw materials to be used so that agrifood companies can market and label their products as Irish; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33325/09]
Amharc ar fhreagra1039 Deputy Arthur Morgan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the procedures he has in place in order that consumers are not misled by products claiming to be Irish; the procedures in place to ensure that raw agrifood materials being imported are not being labelled or marketed as Irish; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33326/09]
Amharc ar fhreagra1040 Deputy Arthur Morgan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the cost to indigenous agrifood enterprises of loopholes in labelling that allow raw materials produced outside of Ireland and subsequently processed here to label and market themselves as Irish; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33327/09]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 1038 to 1040, inclusive, together.
The Minister for Health & Children has overall responsibility for the general food labelling legislation. Responsibility for the enforcement of this legislation rests with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (F.S.A.I.).
Under the general labelling Directive (2000/13/EC), the place of origin of the foodstuff must be given only if its absence might mislead the consumer to a material degree. The European Commission is currently undertaking a major review of all food labelling legislation. In this context the Commission has prepared draft revised labelling regulations and these are being discussed at Council Working Party level in Brussels. These draft regulations will be submitted to the EU Council of Health ministers during 2009.
Notwithstanding the outcome of the current review on origin labelling, in conjunction with the Department of Health and Children, my Department had taken steps to try to introduce origin labelling for meats other than beef, which is already subject to specific labelling legislation since September 2000.
My Department, in conjunction with the Department of Health and Children, drafted regulations that would require the country of origin to be indicated on pigmeat, poultry and sheepmeat. This was notified to the EU Commission in December 2007 as required by legislation. The Commission was not prepared to adopt the draft regulations in their present format on the grounds that the proposed legislation is not in compliance with EU food labelling regulations. The Commission's main contention is that only harmonised rules with EU-wide applicability may be applied to food labelling other than in exceptional circumstances. In March, the EU Commission delivered a negative opinion on the regulations but afforded Ireland an opportunity to provide further information in support of them. In the meantime, the Department provided additional details including evidence of consumers' desire for country of origin labelling. However the EU Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health formally adopted the negative opinion in December 2008.
There is no statutory requirement in place to define the percentage of Irish raw materials to be used for agrifood in order to allow companies to market and label their products as Irish. There is also the issue where a primary product can enter Ireland and be processed in some way thereby allowing it to be branded, as an Irish product, this is known as "substantial transformation". This terminology originates in WTO, CODEX and EU Legislation governing the EU Custom Code and therefore can only be amended at EU level. I have been concerned that this arrangement could, in certain circumstances, be used to mislead the consumers as to the origin of the raw materials used in certain products. This was one of the principal points made to the European Commission in the context of our request for their approval of our proposed national arrangements.
The issue of more informative and clear labelling will continue to be pursued by the Department of Health and Children at EU level in the context of the current review. We are pressing for the inclusion of a requirement to indicate the origin of primary ingredients in finished products.
In the meantime products carrying the Bord Bia quality assurance label provide consumers with assurance on product origin. There is also an industry lead campaign that allows products carry "The Love Irish Food" logo providing 80% of the product's manufacturing process took place in this state and if ingredients were sourced locally where possible.
