Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)

As a member of the EU and the World Trade Organisation Ireland is in a position to avail of opportunities for trade that are essential for the development of our open economy. Membership of these organisations also brings reciprocal trade obligations. The principle is that imported animal products meet standards at least equivalent to those required for production in, and trade between, member states. All such imports must come from third countries or areas of third countries that have been approved by the EU authorities for export to the EU.

Irish farmers are required to ensure their production systems and farm practices fully comply with a wide range of EU directives on important matters including traceability, animal health and welfare and consumer protection. I fully support, therefore, the policy that animal products imported into the EU from third countries meet standards at least equivalent to those required for production in, and trade between, EU member states. Indeed the Minister for Agriculture and Food, Deputy Coughlan, has been in contact with the European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection, Mr. Markos Kyprianou, on this point and on the related point of labelling.

The Commissioner has made it clear that the Commission will not hesitate to take the appropriate protection measures if a product imported from a third country or produced in the domestic market represents a risk for the health of EU consumers, livestock or plants. He pointed out that the Commission's adoption of restrictive measures with regard to the finding of residues of unauthorised substances in poultry meat and the quick and proportionate protective measures applied to imports of beef as a result of the recent outbreaks of foot and mouth disease in Brazil demonstrate the Commission's primary objective of maintaining the high sanitary status of the Community and respecting the EU's commitment under the WTO agreement on sanitary and phytosanitary measures. All measures adopted by the Community on import restrictions for human or animal health reasons are discussed and agreed at meetings of the standing committee on animal health and the food chain. Senior veterinarians from all member states attend these meetings. In terms of the foot and mouth outbreak in Argentina, for example, the standing committee yesterday adopted a Commission proposal to ban imports of meat from the Corrientes region of Argentina.

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