Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 81: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the degree to which traceability, husbandry, processing, distribution and production regulations applicable here to beef, lamb, pig meat, poultry and other food and food products are applied to imported foods or ingredients; the extent to which action has been taken to verify and authenticate labelling and product description; the extent, if any, to which breaches in the regulations were detected; if he is satisfied regarding the adequacy of such regulations and that imported products are compliant to the same extent as native production; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12615/11]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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It is a requirement that animal products for human consumption imported from third countries meet standards at least equivalent to those required for production in, and trade between, Member States. The FVO carries out assessment of third countries wishing to export animal products to EU and submits for Commission approval those where the responsible authorities can provide appropriate guarantees as regards compliance or equivalence with Community feed and food law and animal health rules. Third countries and their establishments that are approved to export are audited and inspected by the FVO with regard to these guarantees and reports of the findings of inspections are published on its website http://ec.europa.eu/food/fvo/ir_search_en.cfm.

Consignments of products of animal origin for human consumption are required to come from third countries or areas of third countries that have been approved and listed for export to the EUhttp://ec.europa.eu/food/food/biosafety/establishments/third_country/index_en.htm. Following pre-notification of import by the importer, they are required to undergo animal and public health controls at an EU approved Border Inspection Post (BIP). Import control involves documentary, identity and physical checks and includes checks on origin and labeling in accordance with EU requirements.

Consignments failing to comply with veterinary control checks may be detained at Border Inspection Post for further examination and where non compliance is established they are returned to the exporting country or destroyed at the importers cost. Controls on products of animal origin imported directly into the EU through Ireland are carried out at approved BIPs at Dublin Port and Shannon Airport. Information on controls that have been applied during year 2009 and 2010, including rejections, are set out on the tables below.

Border Inspection Post Controls on Direct Imports of Products of Animal Origin for Food into Ireland from Third Countries

Year 2009

Year 2010

In addition imports of food of animal origin are included in the Residues Monitoring Programme and details of the results are also published http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/press/press releases/2010/July/title,45090,en.html.

Non-Animal Food Products

My Department is the competent authority for monitoring and control of pesticide residue in food. A monitoring programme and procedures is agreed annually with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland and covers domestic and imported produce. My Department publishes its reports on Pesticide Residues in Food http://www.pcs.agriculture.gov.ie/ppp.htm annually.

New EU harmonised controls on the importation of certain foods of plant origin came into effect on 25 January, 2010. It provides a list of certain food commodities from specified countries outside the EU that must be subject to increased levels of control at designated points of entry (DPE) into the EU. From that date, importers of certain commodities from specified third countries are required to pre-notify import and submit relevant consignments for checks and possible sampling. Consignments sampled are held and not released unless a satisfactory result has been obtained. Samples analysed in 2010, as a consequence of these increased levels of control, were found to meet legal standards for pesticide residues.

The list of produce and countries is based on risk assessments by the Commission using information gathered from the EU pesticide residue monitoring control programme, from national monitoring programmes, consumption data and notifications under the EU's rapid alert system, as well as from audits of controls carried out in exporting countries by the FVO. Decisions to add or remove countries of origin or products or modulate the frequency of sampling applied to imported consignments are undertaken by SCFCAH on a proposal from the Commission.

My Department also enforces marketing standards for fresh fruit and vegetables requiring that fruit and vegetables may only be marketed if they are sound, fair and of a marketable quality and if the country of origin is indicated. Our inspections would confirm that, in general, imported products are as compliant as domestic products in relation to marketing standards.