Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 94: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food the measures she intends to take to improve the standard of food labelling; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14013/05]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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There have been a number of positive developments in the area of food labelling, most of which emanated from the report of the food labelling group which was established in June 2002. The group reported in December of that year with a series of recommendations. The recommendations were accepted. As food labelling is a particularly complicated and broad based area, involving a number of Departments and agencies, an interdepartmental-agency group was established to progress the implementation of the report.

Good progress has been made to date in the implementation of the recommendations in the labelling report. There were a total of 21 recommendations, many of which are beyond the remit of my Department and some of which were to be activated only after others had been completed.

The two main issues that emanated from the recommendations of the labelling group were centralising enforcement in one agency and the definition of origin. Enforcement of all of the food labelling regulations has now been centralised in the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, FSAI. This will not only streamline the enforcement measures but it will also provide a one-stop shop for any complaints on mislabelling of food. The centralisation of food labelling policy, with the exception of fish, in both the Department of Health and Children and my Department achieves another recommendation of the food labelling group. There was full agreement within the food labelling group that consumers have a right to information on the origin of the meat they cook in their homes or eat out. While the group could not agree on how origin should be defined, there was unanimous agreement that further research was necessary to establish consumers' wishes in this area. The consumer liaison panel has carried out this research, the results of which were presented in December 2003.

At the beginning of 2004, two regulations on the labelling of poultry meat were introduced. The first of these regulations requires poultry meat, loose and pre-packaged, originating in a country outside the EU to bear an indication of the country of origin when offered for sale in a retail premises. The second, requires information regarding class, price per unit weight, condition and slaughterhouse details in respect of loose poultrymeat, that is, non-prepackaged, to be provided to the consumer.

EU regulations provide for a detailed labelling system for beef to be applied at retail sale, which is over and above the general labelling provisions. These regulations do not apply at restaurant and catering sector level. It is my intention to proceed with a legal requirement that country of origin must be displayed in respect of beef served on such premises. The legal options allowing for this development are being examined at present. An internal committee has been established in my Department to consider the options.

On the food labelling issue in general, I must emphasise that my primary aim is to protect consumer interest and to ensure that the consumer is properly informed. Ireland is a major exporter of food and food products and, indeed, there are also considerable imports, so it is imperative that the same standards are applied to the labelling of foods in every sector and that there is a level playing field for the food industry at all levels. I hope to achieve this through the implementation in as full a manner as possible of the recommendations of the food labelling group. I have also indicated my views on labelling of foodstuffs in the Council of Agriculture Ministers and have, along with a number of member states, asked the Commission to examine how best food labelling should be handled at EU level in order to best protect the interests of the consumer.

There have been significant developments on food labelling and I am satisfied that other issues of concern are being actively addressed. Today's consumers should be in a position to make food consumption choices which best suit their circumstances and preferences, and an appropriate labelling system is a key element in bringing this about. It is also important to keep in touch with developments in the EU to ensure that any regulations adopted for the Community appropriately address our concerns.