Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 74: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number of meetings of the Food Agency Co-operation Council in 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6788/05]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The Food Agency Co-operation Council was established in 2000 under the aegis of my Department to promote the fullest practical co-operation between the State agencies involved in the food industry in the interests of the optimum development of the industry. The council has an independent chairman, Mr. Padraic White.

The inaugural meeting of the council took place in March 2000 and it has met on 20 occasions since its inception. The last meeting took place in October 2003. It did not meet in 2004 as a number of factors contributed to the difficulties in rescheduling meetings that year. My Department will shortly meet the council's chairman on a possible future work programme having regard to the Enterprise Strategy Report and the 2015 Agri-Vision report.

The council has played a significant role in increasing co-operation, at formal and informal level, between the State agencies involved in the food industry and has led to a number of memorandums of understandings being agreed between agencies. The council has also produced a number of publications which have been well received by the industry. In 2001 the council was instrumental in the drawing up of an agreed human resource development programme for the food processing industry and also produced the publication Market Trends — Implications for Suppliers and State Agency Initiatives. In December 2002, the council's publication A National Food Incident Management Plan was launched. The Market Led New Product Development Guide, launched in April 2003, provides guidance to food and drink companies in relation to new product development best practice.