Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 December 2017
574. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of progress towards the programme for Government commitment to continuing to explore the potential development of an all-island label to successfully address the problems associated with so-called nomad cattle; and the number of North South Ministerial Council meetings at which he raised this subject with colleagues. [53986/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe labelling of food in the European Union is governed by a number of EU regulations which lay down strict requirements including in relation to mandatory country of origin labelling for certain meats.
Under EU rules, labels on meat from cattle born and reared in the Republic of Ireland and exported live to Northern Ireland and subsequently slaughtered there, must include the member state of birth and rearing, and the member state of slaughter.
It is possible to include a voluntary label, but this may not contradict mandatory origin labelling, nor does it obviate the requirement for mandatory labelling. The possibility of a voluntary all Island label has been previously raised with British retailers, who have made clear that they have a longstanding policy to market British and Irish beef separately, with a simple, clear origin label.
While voluntary labelling of this nature has been mooted as a mechanism to encourage a live export trade between the Republic and Northern Ireland, it must be noted that this trade is determined by a range of factors, including the Sterling exchange rate and the supply of cattle in each market, retailer preferences and production cycles. It should be noted that live exports to Northern Ireland have increased for the year to date by 11% since the corresponding period in 2016.
The North South Ministerial Council (NSMC) is a forum that discusses a wide range of matters pertinent to the beef sectors in both jurisdictions, however this matter has not been the subject of discussions at this meeting in recent times.
