Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 9 March 2017
6. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will address the urgent need to resolve the issue of China's ban on Irish live brown crab exports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12197/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThis question relates to the Chinese ban on the import of Irish live brown crab, which has been ongoing for 16 months, with seemingly very little action being taken to deal with it.
On 29 October 2015, the Chinese food import authorities wrote to the Irish Embassy in Beijing expressing concern about the levels of the heavy metal cadmium in live crabs coming from Ireland, which the Chinese authorities determined exceeded Chinese limits. The Chinese authorities requested that Ireland ensure only crabs which meet the Chinese standards for cadmium be permitted for export. European legislation sets a limit of 0.5 milligrams per kilogram for white muscle meat from the limbs only. The Chinese authorities are currently applying this limit to all crabmeat. I understand that crabs take in cadmium, which is a naturally occurring element, from the environment and it builds up in the brown meat of the crab to much higher levels than the white meat. I am advised by the Marine Institute that Irish waters have very low cadmium levels. It is important to bear in mind that heavy metals occur naturally at low levels in the marine environment.
In view of the Chinese request to meet this Chinese standard for live crabs, the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority, Ireland's competent authority for seafood safety, certification and sea-fisheries conservation, notified Irish crab exporters of the new monitoring requirements and the difficulties this would pose for the authority in providing health certificates for live Irish crabs intended for export to China. Ultimately, the implementation of food regulations for imports into China is a matter for the Chinese authorities. Ireland applies the stringent European standards and follows procedures, which include monitoring the safety of Irish seafood, so consumers can continue to have high confidence in the quality of Irish seafood.
As part of efforts to support the trade of compliant safe seafood, a memorandum of understanding is in place with the Chinese import authorities that allows for technical dialogue. The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority continues to work with Chinese import control officials on this market access issue, supported by officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. A visit to Irish crab production and State laboratory facilities by Chinese import control officials was hosted in May 2016. Following this, there has been continuing communication between the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority and Chinese officials on this issue. The matter was further discussed between Irish and Chinese experts in the course of Ireland’s trade mission to China in September 2016. A further visit by Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority experts to China is being arranged for the near future. The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority, my Department and the Department of Foreign affairs and Trade are continuing strenuous efforts to secure agreement with Chinese officials for resumption of this trade at the earliest possible date.
The Minister's response gets to the nub of the problem. This has been left to be dealt with at official level with the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority and the Chinese officials. France was subject to the same ban, which lasted for eight months.
The UK was subject to the same ban, which lasted 12 months. Here we are, 16 months down the road and we still have no access, whereas France and the UK have had access restored. The only explanation one can arrive at is that there was intervention at a political level in France in the UK that allowed exports to resume. It is hard to escape the thought that if this were the pork industry, people would be going over non-stop to try to have it reinstated. However, nothing is happening regarding the live brown crab. To add insult to injury, Irish live brown crab is being exported to France, repackaged and exported to China. How does it make sense? The only explanation can be that there is no involvement at a political or diplomatic level to resolve the issue and that it is being left to the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority.
That is not the case. On a delegation to China, I raised the issue, supported by the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority, with the Chinese authorities. While the Chinese market is very important for us, so is the certification we give, not just to seafood but to all our other food exports. I appreciate the Deputy's point, and the fact the meat is being exported, repackaged and sold on to China is interesting. Our certification process is critical to the offering we make all over the world in respect of all our foodstuffs. We do not want to diminish it in any way and we are not prepared to sign something we cannot stand over regarding the technical requirements the Chinese are imposing on us. We are engaging at a very senior level politically, diplomatically and technically in my Department with the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority and the Marine Institute in an effort to ensure we reopen the market, which is particularly important. It is not for want of engagement at any level, and I hope we can make progress on the matter.
It is hard to escape the fact that the French overcame the issue in eight months and the English in 12 months, whereas 16 months later we are still here. I am sure the French are providing certification which meets the standards the Chinese can accept. It seems to me that there is no action. Maybe we should ask the French for advice on how they overcame the issue. A substantial market is potentially available. In 2015, one supplier sent 225 tonnes to China at a value of €1.8 million. We could potentially have had an export market of more than €5 million this year if this had not been in place. Surely the French are very proud of their standards of certification in their food industry. I am sure the English are too. Here we are, it has been almost double the time and we have no access.
I understand the Deputy's point. At face value, it appears illogical that our crab is purchased by other EU nations and resold. The integrity of our certification process is critical, not just to crab meat to China but to every other product we certify for markets all over the world. If we in any way diminish the standing of the certification process, there would be a domino effect. My officials are right to insist they stand over the certification process. Cadmium is a naturally occurring metal which is as prevalent in our crab meat as it is in French or UK crab. However, our certification process has an integrity on which we are not prepared to compromise. We are engaged in very complex, technical, scientific negotiations with the equivalent authorities in China on the matter. Last September I was in the room when the matter was raised with the Chinese authorities in the presence of the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority. While I cannot definitively say when the matter will be resolved, it will not be for want of commitment at all those levels to bring the matter to a successful conclusion.
