Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 33: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the regulations and controls in place and the checks carried out by his officials in the meat factories on lamb imports and specifically the labels attached or placed on importers' labels when leaving factories here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37441/08]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister for Health and Children has overall responsibility for the general food labelling legislation. Responsibility for enforcement of labelling legislation rests with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) through its service contracts with my Department, the Sea Fisheries Protection Agency, the Health Service Executive, the Local Authorities and the National Consumer Agency.

General food labelling legislation, as set out in Directive 2000/13/EC on the labelling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs does not require a declaration of origin of food. However declaration requirements exist in legislation for some food products including beef, and some imported poultry in specific circumstances such as when raw and imported from a non-EU country. There is a clear requirement that consumers should not be misled by food labelling. Manufacturers may voluntarily declare a country of origin, and consumers should not be misled by that declaration.

The competent authority with responsibility for enforcement of labelling legislation in retail establishments is the Health Service Executive through its Environmental Health Officers under contract to the FSAI. Labelling checks are also carried out by officials of my Department as part of the routine official checks in meat establishments under the Department supervision. Checks are conducted on a random, risk based frequency and cover labelling, traceability, origin, identification of animals, and the labelling of carcases, meat, mince meat and meat products.

Lamb imported from within the European Union is checked to ensure that it complies with the labelling and hygiene requirements. Lamb imported from a third country is checked at a Border Inspection Post on its arrival into the EU to confirm that its veterinary certification is correct, that it is correctly labelled and identified and the meat is checked to ensure that it is fit for human consumption. All lamb imported into Ireland must comply with the same labelling requirements as Irish lamb when sold in supermarkets in Ireland. There is no legal requirement to indicate the country of origin for lamb.