Results 13,501-13,520 of 23,991 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Pigmeat Sector (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Keepers are required to keep their own records regarding on farm mortalities and this requirement is checked by Departmental staff during animal welfare inspections. However, specific data on the numbers of pigs that die on farm is not routinely collected by my Department. Pig farms are subject to inspections by officials from my Department for a variety of reasons including for animal...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Pigmeat Sector (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Veterinary medicines legislation requires that antibiotics can only be dispensed on foot of a prescription issued by a veterinary practitioner. Therefore, in Ireland, antibiotics can only be obtained by a farmer on prescription from a veterinary practitioner. European Regulation 2019/6 comes into effect from January 2022 and will repeal existing national veterinary medicines legislation. In...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: My Department, through funding and expertise, provides support for the ‘Project for High Welfare Standards for Pigs’ and has established a working group to oversee the continued progress of the project. Project coordination and management are led by Muca Eireann and Pigs Ireland in collaboration with my Department and in partnership with RSPCA Assured, pilot scheme pig farmers,...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Feedstuffs (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: EU Regulation (EC) No 767/2009 on the Placing on the Market and Use of Feed specifies that ‘packaging from the use of products from the agrifood industry and parts thereof’ are designated as prohibited materials, essentially meaning a zero tolerance for materials such as paper and plastic in animal feed. However, in order to reduce levels of food waste and the unnecessary...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Organic Farming Scheme (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Based on the budget allocation for 2021 and subject to European Commission approval, my Department is in a position to offer a one year extension to those Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) participants whose contracts expire on 31st December 2020. I was very pleased to have secured this funding in the budget for next year and to give this certainty to the applicants. An additional €4...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Grants (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The Forestry Appeals Committee (FAC) was established by amendment to the Agriculture Appeals Act, 2001. It is operationally independent of my Department. The FAC is responsible for appeals against forestry licence decisions and arranges its own appeal hearings. The Deputy will be aware that Forestry (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020, which amended the Agriculture Appeals Act recently...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Afforestation Programme (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: My Department is fully committed to supporting the expansion of the national forest estate. The multi-functional benefits of forestry are well known including increased removal of carbon from our atmosphere, creation of more habitats rich in biodiversity and better water quality. This support is provided through generous grants and premiums under the Forestry Programme 2014 -2020 which has...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Herd Data (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The CSO's June Livestock Survey includes the information below for the years 2015-2019: 000 head 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 *2020 Total cattle 6,964 7,221 7,364 7,348 7209 7314 - of which: Dairy cows 1,296 1,398 1,433 ...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Herd Data (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Data on the national herd are published twice yearly by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) on the basis of two categories; dairy and other cows. The following table details the number of dairy cows in Ireland using final data extracted from the CSO June Livestock Survey. Figures presented have been rounded to the nearest decimal point. Year 2010 2011 ...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Dairy Sector (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Markets for Irish dairy produce, despite significant challenges faced in recent years, in particular the impact of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, continue to perform strongly. My Department remains extremely vigilant in monitoring the current market and emerging trends, and engaging with the industry to ensure a continued strong performance. In 2019, Ireland exported dairy...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Beef Exports (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: My Department, together with Bord Bia and Ireland’s diplomatic network, works continuously to open new markets and enhance market access for Irish beef to markets outside the EU. Our approach to market development is a combination of targeted research, high-level diplomacy, consultation with important agri-food stakeholders and co-operation with officials in competent authorities...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Sheepmeat Sector (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The future prospects of Irish lamb exports in overseas market are statisfactory. Of the four major meat species exported from Ireland, the sheepmeat trade is the least reliant on the UK market. In 2019, according to CSO data, 71% of sheepmeat products in value terms were exported to the EU, 20% to the UK and 9% was exported to third country markets. In volume terms, France was the main...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Poultry Industry (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: As a value-for-money source of protein-rich food, poultrymeat has seen an increase in demand in recent years. Ireland exports poultry to over 30 countries worldwide. According to the latest CSO trade figures, the volume of poultry exports rose by 8,000 tonnes to 144,000 tonnes in 2019. The overall value of Irish poultry exports increased by 12% between 2016 and 2019. While the UK...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Pigmeat Sector (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Measures to further develop and diversify markets for Irish pigmeat and pigmeat products are undoubtedly the most effective means of maintaining stable export flows and minimising trade disruption. Increasing international market access for Irish agri-food exports is a core element of Food Wise 2025, the strategic framework for developing the overall agri-food sector. The strategy...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Food Exports (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Developing and increasing third country market access and ensuring the highest standard of food production have long been integral parts of my Department’s strategy for the development of the Irish Agri-food sector. The challenges posed by Brexit have required an increased emphasis on third country market access in order to protect the Agri food sector, given our exposure to the UK...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Food Industry (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Regardless of the outcome of the trade negotiations between the EU and the UK, from 1 January 2021, things will change for our agri-food industry, particularly for importers and exporters of agri-food products, who will have to comply with new customs and regulatory requirements. EU legislation requires that sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) controls, in the form of documentary, identity and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Beef Data and Genomics Programme (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: For 2020, a key requirement of the Beef Data Genomics Programme (BDGP) I is that participants must ensure that at least 50% of their reference animals are genotyped heifers/eligible suckler cows and rated 4/5 stars on the replacement index. Under BDGP II, which commenced in 2017, the female replacement requirement is 20% of their reference animals. This was clearly set out in the terms and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Livestock Issues (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Since the beginning of the Covid crisis, my Department has worked intensively, in cooperation with marts representative organisations, to ensure that marts may remain in operation. My Department has adapted the conditions under which marts must operate since April, to reflect the various measures introduced by the Government to stop the spread of Covid, and to allow marts to continue to...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Meat Processing Plants (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: As the Deputy is aware, my Department has a statutory responsibility to approve slaughter plants in accordance with the European Union (Food and Feed Hygiene) Regulations 2020. In relation to the proposed plant referenced, my officials are engaging with the proposed plant operators to ensure that they understand and address the requirements for approval to be registered with DAFM and to...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Data Protection (3 Nov 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: My Department recorded fifty data breaches in the year 2019. All of these breaches were reported to the Irish Data Protection Commission, as required under Article 33 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).