Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the names of the meat slaughtering and processing plants that have had their licences to operate suspended; if this is temporary or permanent; if there are further plants that will be refused permission to operate arising from the horse meat scandal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14738/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The report on the ‘Equine DNA and Mislabelling of Processed Beef Investigation’, which I published on 14th March, includes details of the companies that came to my Department’s attention during this investigation and the resulting actions taken by the Department.

The normal procedure in my Department is that a suspension notice on a food business operator is not lifted until the Department is satisfied that the issues giving rise to the suspension have been fully addressed. After a suspension is lifted the food business operator is normally subject to additional official controls for an appropriate period to ensure there is no recurrence of the issues that gave rise to the suspension. It is not appropriate at this point to further discuss individual food business operators or to anticipate future decisions regarding approvals to operate.