Written answers
Wednesday, 23 October 2019
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Beef Exports
Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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168. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the progress being made to open up the Iranian market for beef exports; the trading barriers which remain at international or EU level to transit exports to the country; and the other factors that may be acting as barriers to increasing meat exports to Iran. [43701/19]
Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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The Iranian market is already open for beef and sheepmeat exports.
A veterinary health certificate for the export of Irish beef to Iran was agreed in March 2013. According to the CSO, trade has been negligible in recent years. Officials from my Department participated in a successful trade mission to Iran and Turkey in April 2016 which resulted in a bilaterally agreed veterinary health certificate that allowed Irish sheepmeat access to the Iranian market. However, no sheepmeat exports have been recorded by the CSO since the market was opened in October 2016.
Trade with Iran is hindered by a combination of unfavourable trading conditions, plentiful supplies from lower-cost competitors and non-regulatory or financial barriers. In relation to the non-regulatory barriers, work is ongoing at EU level to facilitate efficient commercial transactions between businesses in member states and Iran.
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