Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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211. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the current status of plans for an all-island animal health regime, and single country of origin food label; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19622/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I have been a strong proponent of origin labelling as a means of providing consumers with clear and transparent information about the food they consume, including as regards the origin of that food. The rules on origin labelling are determined at EU level and I recently signed into law an SI to give effect to the new European Regulations for country of origin labelling of meat from sheep, pigs, poultry and goats. These mandatory rules require a label to state the Member State where the animal was reared and slaughtered. They do not operate on a regional, multi member state or all-island basis.

The requirement at EU level applies only to pre-packaged meat. However, I believe this information should also be made available to consumers purchasing meat sold loose through butcher shops and deli counters. As a result, I have asked my officials to work with the Department of Health to extend these rules to “loose meat” and work is progressing well in bringing this to fruition.

With regards to Northern Ireland, I have been in regular contact with my counterpart Minister Michelle O’Neill on labelling issues that affect both jurisdictions on the island. There is also considerable engagement at official level and, only last week, my Department met with officials from DARD Northern Ireland to discuss the practical implementation of the new country of origin labelling requirements, including any impact which these may be having on the trade in lambs from Northern Ireland.

Ultimately, these issues are a function of the market and are driven by customer specification. This is borne out by the fact that live export of beef animals to the North is nearly 50% higher than it was at this time last year and this has been achieved without any change to the beef labelling rules. This shows that a true picture of the market forces impacting on the market takes time to become apparent and the situation for lamb this year is no different, particularly since the new rules have only been introduced from 1 April.

Of course, it is important that we continue to monitor the impact of labelling rules carefully. I will continue to work to ensure that mandatory labelling laws provide clear and transparent information to consumers, are practicable, and do not negatively impact on Ireland’s agri food exports.

As regards an all-island animal health regime, there is already a substantial degree of harmonisation of the veterinary regimes on the island of Ireland, particularly in view of the fact that the bulk of the animal health and welfare measures implemented on the island are based on EU legislation. However, the incidence of cattle disease is not uniform on the island, particularly in the case of Bovine TB and Brucellosis, resulting in different eradication programmes on both sides of the Border. This aside, there is ongoing good co-operation between the veterinary services North and South in the context of delivery of the All-Island Animal Health and Welfare Strategy Action Plan under the North/South Ministerial arrangements.