Colm Burke (Fine Gael)

My question is about the sale of pesticides. While I know there is comprehensive legislation dealing with this matter, I would like to ask about counterfeit pesticides. My understanding is that there is a major trade in counterfeit pesticides across Europe, although the authorities are working hard to combat this problem. A loophole has been identified. It is illegal to sell counterfeit pesticides, but it appears there is a deficiency in the legislation in some European countries, and the legislation in Ireland lacks some clarity with regard to whether the authorities have the right to confiscate. In a recent case, 135 tonnes of counterfeit pesticides that were being transported between Germany and Lithuania had to be returned to the owners because the legislation there did not allow the products to be confiscated.

Now we are facing into the spring season, in which there is substantial use of pesticides in this country. In fairness to farmers in this country, they are careful about what they buy and who they buy it from, but it appears this is a growing problem across Europe. What checks have been established in this country? Do we have adequate legislation to ensure we can impound any product that is proved to be a counterfeit? The people who are bringing these products to the market use false information on the containers, so it may be hard to identify what is counterfeit unless there are adequate testing procedures. Does the Minister have concerns about this matter? How are the products coming into this country checked? How can we ensure our legislation in this regard is adequate?