Michael Comiskey (Fine Gael)

I move:

To delete all words after ''Seanad Éireann'' and substitute the following:

''noting that:

- minimisation and management of food waste is being addressed under the national waste prevention programme and the plan covering the period 2009-12;

- the Waste Management (Food Waste) Regulations 2009, on commercial food waste, introduced by the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, include a requirement that from 1 July 2010 the commercial sector has the food waste it generates segregated and collected separately and also imposes obligations on the major sources of food waste such as hot food outlets and institutions;

- the Waste Management (Landfill Levy) Regulations 2011 provide for an increase in the landfill levy to €50 per tonne from 1 September 2011 and that there is a commitment to further increases;

- the general food labelling Directive 200/13/EC (S.I. 483/2002) requires indication of the place of origin where failure to give such particulars might mislead the consumer to a material degree and EU food information regulations will provide additional information for the consumer;

- according to IUNA data, children are not eating the recommended portions of milk, fresh meat and fruit and vegetables;

considers that these measures will improve Ireland's performance in relation to food waste, and in particular;

- notes the launch by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government of the green public procurement action plan in January 2012, which aims to implement green public procurement in favour of more resource efficient, less polluting goods services and works;

- highlights that food and catering services are a priority area for green procurement and that contracting parties will be required to deal with food waste in compliance with the national composting standard;

- emphasises that the sustainability of the agrifood sector in Ireland provides consumers in Ireland and further afield with environmental assurance, and welcomes in this regard schemes such as the Bord Bia beef and lamb quality assurance scheme, developed in partnership with Teagasc and the Carbon Trust, which includes traceability back to the farm and carbon measurement on the farm, as well as an indication of origin;

- remarks that country of origin labelling is currently mandatory for beef, fish, honey, olive oil and fresh fruit and vegetables and for other products when its absence might mislead the consumer; that this is being extended to other meats and that the European Commission will carry out a feasibility study of the possibility of extending country of origin labelling requirements to other foods, including ingredients that represent more than 50% of a food;

- notes that the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is supporting research into anaerobic digestion, utilisation of by-products of processing and fruit and vegetable waste in particular and considers that it is important that the findings of such research are commercialised and used on a wide scale;

- encourages more schools to take up the EU school milk scheme;

- notes that the Food Dude-EU school fruit scheme, managed by Bord Bia and funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has now been rolled out to over half of primary school children and that evaluations of the scheme have consistently shown increased consumption of fruit and vegetables;

- recommends wider publicity of the stop food waste programme (StopFoodWaste.ie), foodwaste.ie and the EPA publication Less Food Waste — More Profit which provides advice for consumers and operators on buying, storage and low waste cookery tips such as buying what is required, taking note of existing stock, checking "use by" dates and understanding the differences between "use by", "best before" and "sell by" dates, and how to compost any residual food waste, as easy access to information and advice could have a substantial impact on individual consumer decisions and national patterns of consumer and operator behaviour''.

I welcome the Minister, Deputy Simon Coveney. I am delighted he is with us for this debate. I also welcome the content of the Private Members' motion and acknowledge the work done in its drafting.

The minimisation and management of food waste are being adequately dealt with in accordance with the national waste prevention programme which covers 2012. The Waste Management (Food Waste) Regulations 2009 on commercial food waste introduced in July 2010 impose strict requirements and conditions on the commercial food sector. The labelling of food products sold in Ireland is regulated by the general food labelling directive which requires indication of the place of origin where a failure to give such particulars might mislead the consumer to a material degree.

I welcome implementation by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Phil Hogan, of the green public procurement action plan launched last month. This demonstrates the Government's commitment to ensuring greener public procurement in favour of more resource efficient and less pollutant goods and services and works.

Ireland's agrifood sector is second to none. The Irish meat and livestock sector expanded by 9% in 2010, with the value of exports increasing to €2.44 billion. An increase in the value of beef, pigmeat, poultry, sheep meat and live export was evident.

SI 435 of 2000 as amended by SI 485 of 2002 requires mandatory traceability and origin labelling for beef from the slaughterhouse to the point of sale to consumers. Bord Bia has an excellent beef and lamb quality assurance scheme in place, developed in conjunction with Teagasc and the Carbon Trust. The scheme demands traceability back to the farm and carbon measurement on all farms, including indications of origin. Being a farmer, I have first-hand knowledge of this, like every other farmer.

The Government amendment emphasises that country of origin labelling is mandatory for beef, fish, honey, olive oil, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables and other produce, where its absence might mislead the consumer. This is reassuring for all Irish consumers. We can rest assured that our food products are adequately labelled.

I firmly believe increased publicity of the stop food waste programme would be useful in increasing public awareness of the level of food waste in the home and society. The EPA report, Less Food Waste - More Profit, provides excellent advice for consumers and operators and tips such as buying only what one requires.

In response to some of the points raised in the motion, in regard to nutritional labelling on food products, the Minister for Health, Deputy James Reilly, has recently written to all food chain outlets in Ireland asking them to introduce calorie indicators on their menus. He has given a commitment that if this is not done, he will introduce legislation to ensure food chain outlets are mandatorily obliged to print and display calorie indicators on all food produce sold to consumers. A consultation process was recently launched by the Minister which presents an opportunity for consumers and the food industry to give their views on how a policy of having calorie indicators on menus can be implemented in Ireland. All interested parties are invited to comment and to facilitate maximum participation in the consultation process which involves the completion of a short on-line questionnaire. The consultation process will close at the end of February. This is the first step in altering lifestyles in Ireland, for young and older people. By the same token, parents will be able to make more informed choices and purchase healthier food for their children when they go shopping for groceries.

On education for schoolchildren on food labelling, safefood has previously stated choosing the right foods to suit one's diet is an important skill for all ages. Healthy eating is not just about knowing about nutrients, it is also about choosing good quality food which one can afford, ensuring it is rich in nutrients and safe to eat. safefood has designed educational lessons on food labelling for primary school students in second and third class. It has designed, in consultation with teachers, three lessons that have a variety of suggested activities and that teachers can extend to a fourth session should they wish to spend longer looking at labels and studying them. Issues such as whether all fats are bad and food intolerance are some of the relevant topics. These lessons are a resource for the curricular modules on physical health, communication skills and influences and decisions. As part of the curriculum, these lessons are designed to enable students to put labels in the context of a typical diet, thereby promoting the concept of self-management. This resource will provide students with the skills necessary to make healthy and safe food choices in addition to making them sensible food shoppers and handlers. I agree that one always was taught about the importance of not wasting food. I thank the Minister for his attendance and for his contribution to the debate.