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Meat Processing Plant Inspections

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 12 February 2019

Tuesday, 12 February 2019

Ceisteanna (330)

Denis Naughten

Ceist:

330. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the number of meat plants inspected by the legal metrology service in each of the years 2016 to 2018; the date each plant was inspected; the breaches that were found; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6634/19]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí scríofa

The National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) Legal Metrology Service is responsible for the implementation of the Metrology Acts 1980-1996 and related Regulations. It does this through certifying and inspecting measurement instruments and the quantities of pre-packaged products. A wide range of measuring instruments, including weighing instruments used in meat plants, are subject to legal metrological control when used for trade purposes.

The Metrology Act 1996 and associated Regulations provide that only nationally approved instruments or instruments that have undergone European conformity assessment and bear the CE mark can be used for trade. The primary responsibility for design approval and conformity assessment rests with the manufacturer. The trader is obliged to ensure that only such a measuring instrument is used for trade and that it is correct and verified at all times.

In order to ensure sufficient resources are available for traders to keep their instruments in compliance, NSAI Legal Metrology has authorised private operators, under section 12 of the Metrology Act 1996 and subject to specific conditions, to undertake verifications at the request of the instrument owner. To monitor compliance, NSAI Legal Metrology Inspectors, operating out of seven offices countrywide, carry out inspections at meat plants on the basis of risk-based enforcement.

During 2016, 2017 and 2018, Legal Metrology did not receive any complaints in relation to the suspected use of non-compliant weighing instruments used for trade purposes in meat plants.

Inspections will be ongoing in this sector throughout 2019.

2018 Meat Plant Visits

Table 1. 2018 Visit Dates & Locations

Inspection Date

Trader Name

15-Oct-18

LIFFEY MEATS

23-Oct-18

ENNIS ABATTOIR

15-Aug-18

STAUNTON FOODS LTD.

11-Oct-18

DAWN MEATS

13-Mar-18

DAWN MEATS

08-Nov-18

C&J MEATS

24-Sep-18

DAWN MEATS

22-Jun-18

DAWN MEATS

09-Oct-18

CAROLAN'S BUTCHERS

12-Feb-18

DAWN MEATS

21-Mar-18

DAWN MEATS

22-Aug-18

IRISH COUNTRY MEATS

26-Oct-18

IRISH COUNTRY MEATS

20-Mar-18

ABP CLONES

28-Nov-18

ABP CLONES

29-Nov-18

ABP CLONES

05-Jul-18

KEPAK MEATS LTD.

06-Nov-18

COURTNEY MEATS

18-Jun-18

LIFFEY MEATS LTD.

23-Oct-18

KEPAK

12-Jun-18

KEPAK LTD.

06-Apr-18

KEPAK LTD.

27-Apr-18

ANGLO IRISH BEEF PROCESSORS

07-Nov-18

FOYLE DONEGAL

25-Oct-18

ASHBOURNE MEAT PROCESSERS LTD.

28-May-18

DAWN MEATS

29-May-18

ABP

24-Oct-18

CLONMORE MEATS

19-Nov-18

ROSDERRA IRISH MEATS

30-Nov-18

ABP RATHKEALE

22-May-18

ABP RATHKEALE

22-Oct-18

LUNDY MEATS

08-Oct-18

DUNLEAVY MEATS

02-Oct-18

HOGAN TURKEYS LTD.

25-Oct-18

HOGAN TURKEYS LTD.

18-Apr-18

CUNNIFFE BACON COMP. LTD.

07-Mar-18

ABP IRELAND

11-Oct-18

ABP IRELAND

15-Jan-18

ABP IRELAND

28-May-18

ABP

12-Jul-18

ABP

04-Jul-18

ABP

08-Jun-18

IRISH COUNTRY MEATS

13-Nov-18

IRISH COUNTRY MEATS

08-Jun-18

IRISH COUNTRY MEATS

16-Apr-18

SLANEY FOODS

21-May-18

SANDYFORD MEATS LTD.

30-May-18

KEPAK

09-Jun-18

KEPAK

49 meat plants were visited by Legal Metrology Inspectors during 2018 with the following instrument types inspected: weighbridge, platform scales, bench scales and overhead tracks. Of the 327 instruments inspected, 74 failed (an instrument may have more than one failure), and two were removed from trade use as they were operating outside the legal tolerance and did not re-enter trade use until the non-compliance was addressed by an NSAI Authorised Verifier. The remaining failures were considered minor and the instruments were allowed to remain in trade use for up to 20 days, during which time the non-compliance was addressed by an Authorised Verifier

Table 2. 2018 Detected Non-Compliance

No. of Failures

Failure Reason

15

Never Verified

1

Within + 10% excess of Maximum Permissible Error (MPE)

2

> -10% (deficiency) of MPE

4

Incorrect or Missing Descriptive Marks

4

Other non-conformity

56

Repaired, altered or adjusted (On inspection a seal has been found to be no longer intact due to either a repair, alteration or adjustment since last verification took place)

2017 Meat Plant Visits

Table 3. 2017 Visit Dates and Locations

Inspection Date

Trader Name

06-Apr-17

LIFFEY MEATS

12-Jun-17

LIFFEY MEATS

15-Aug-17

DIVILLY'S QUALITY FOOD PRODUCTS

05-Sep-17

EMERALD ISLE FOODS

01-Dec-17

JENNINGS MEATS

15-Feb-17

KEPAK

10-May-17

KEPAK

28-Nov-17

ROSDERRA MEATS

06-Oct-17

FOYLE DONEGAL

07-Sep-17

O'GORMAN MEATS

07-Jul-17

ROSDERRA

09-Oct-17

OLIVER CARTY LTD.

28-Nov-17

ASHBOURNE MEATS

13-Dec-17

ABP

03-Apr-17

DAWN MEATS

14-Mar-17

DUNBIA

29-Aug-17

IRISH COUNTRY MEATS

06-Sep-17

KAVANAGH MEATS

09-Mar-17

SANDYFORD MEATS LTD.

29-Aug-17

KEPAK

28-Aug-17

KEPAK

21 meat plants were visited by Legal Metrology Inspectors during 2017 with the following instrument types inspected: weighbridge, platform scales, bench scales and overhead tracks. Of the 93 instruments inspected, 17 failed (an instrument may have more than one failure) and two were removed from trade use as they were operating outside the legal tolerance and did not re-enter trade use until the non-compliance was addressed by an NSAI Authorised Verifier. The remaining failures were considered minor and the instruments were allowed to remain in trade use for up to 20 days, during which time the non-compliance was addressed by an Authorised Verifier.

Table 4. 2017 Detected Non-Compliance

No. of Failures

Failure Reason

2

> -10% (deficiency) of MPE

3

Never Verified

2

Incorrect or Missing Descriptive Marks

12

Repaired, altered or adjusted

1

Within + 10% excess of MPE

2016 Meat Plant Visits

Table 5. 2016 Visit Dates & Locations

Inspection Date

Trader Name

21-Sep-16

SEÁN LOUGHNANE (GALWAY)

09-Feb-16

BALLON MEATS LTD.

29-Aug-16

STAUNTON FOODS LTD.

13-May-16

DAWN MEATS

03-Aug-16

GREEN PASTURES MEAT PROCESSORS LTD.

02-Jun-16

DAWN MEATS

24-Aug-16

DAWN MEATS

13-Dec-16

JENNINGS MEATS

20-Sep-16

ROSDERRA MEATS

23-Mar-16

COURTNEY MEATS

23-Sep-16

FOYLE DONEGAL

29-Nov-16

QK MEATS LTD.

05-Dec-16

QK MEATS LTD.

17-Jun-16

ABP

23-Aug-16

ABP

05-Aug-16

ROSDERRA IRISH MEATS

06-Sep-16

KEPAK LTD.

04-Nov-16

KEPAK LTD.

26-Jul-16

LUNDY MEATS

11-Mar-16

DUNLEAVY MEATS

29-Nov-16

DUNLEAVY MEATS

31-May-16

DUNLEAVY MEATS

04-Nov-16

ABP IRELAND

09-Feb-16

IRISH COUNTRY MEATS

09-Feb-16

SLANEY FOODS

06-Oct-16

DUBLIN PRODUCTS LTD.

26 meat plants were visited by Legal Metrology Inspectors during 2016 with the following instrument types inspected: weighbridge, platform scales and overhead tracks. Of the 71 instruments inspected, 15 failed and one was removed from trade use as it was operating outside the legal tolerance and did not re-enter trade use until the non-compliance was addressed by an NSAI Authorised Verifier. The remaining failures were considered minor and the instruments were allowed to remain in trade use for up to 20 days, during which time the non-compliance was addressed by an Authorised Verifier.

Table 6. 2016 Detected Non-Compliance

No. of Failures

Failure Reason

4

Never Verified

1

> +10% (excess) of MPE

9

Repaired, altered or adjusted

1

Within - 10% excess of MPE

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