Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their presentations. They have been very comprehensive. They have outlined all the issues and have made a series of recommendations. Their presentation is stating the obvious about what we need to do. With regard to people going undetected, a friend of mine found out only last year that she was a coeliac, having lived her life to date without knowing. The witnesses made recommendations with regard to databases as well and I can see that if one does not have a database, it is difficult to know how to improve services.

What strikes me, aside from points others have made is that people can be in hospital or care home situations and not even be provided with the correct food. That is a serious concern because one is supposed to be caring for someone who is sick and it is actually making them sicker if one is not giving them what they need. I would never have thought about how easy cross-contamination is, as was highlighted, and that it may happen simply by putting something into a toaster or through food processing or cross-contamination in kitchens, perhaps because people have not been trained. This is also a huge concern.

I picked up on another issue about the Coeliac Society and the key role it plays in helping people. The witnesses mentioned food safety, the random checks of foods and meals sold as gluten-free, and inspections triggered by consumer complaints and confusing labelling due to legislation. Who carries out these inspections? What is the follow-up to them? What happens when these things are detected?