Mr. Kevin Hurley:

Yes. It is up to Irish authorities to interpret national legislation and we always interpreted national legislation to include food supplements as food. There are other types of non-conventional food or not ordinary everyday food, for example food-grade chemicals - all these numbers from E100 up to E900 - which are zero rated at the moment. Revenue considers them to be food. They are not ordinary conventional food but they are still included under the umbrella term of food and as such zero rated. They can only be not zero rated by being excluded from the food and drink table that is in the VAT legislation. That is the only way a food cannot be zero rated.