Written answers
Wednesday, 9 March 2022
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Agriculture Industry
Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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237. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the amount of grain by type produced in the State in each of the years 2012 to 2021 and to date in 2022; the amount by type imported in the State in each of the years 2012 to 2021 and to date in 2022; the amount imported of which is GMO; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13177/22]
Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Table 1 provides Central Statistics Office (CSO) data on wheat, oats and barley produced in Ireland for the years 2012 to 2020. CSO production data for 2021 is not currently available but is expected at the end of April 2022.
Table 2 provides full year data on imports of wheat, oats and barley for the years 2012 to 2021 and the to date figures in 2022. This import data is based on returns provided by feed business operators to my Department in accordance with animal feed regulations.
There were no imports of GMO wheat, GMO barley or GMO oats in the period 2013 to date in 2022. Data in relation to 2012 is not available.
Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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238. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the technical specifications that inform the traceability of input feed in food production; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13179/22]
Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Ensuring the safety of feed is a critically important function of my Department. Regulation (EC) 178/2002 lays down the general principles and requirements for food and feed law and this Regulation defines traceability as the ability to trace and follow feed through all stages of production, processing and distribution.
Responsibility for ensuring compliance with this Regulation, other feed legislation, traceability requirements and, in particular, the safety of feed placed on the market rests with Feed Business Operators (FBOs).
To complement and support this principle, my Department is actively engaged in a comprehensive annual inspection programme at all levels of the feed chain to monitor the safe handling, production and use of animal feed. In this programme, the inspection, sampling and analysis of official feed samples are selected on the basis of a risk assessment and, in particular, on the basis of the experience gained from previous inspections, audits and analysis of samples.
The risk-based selection process aims to ensure that resources are targeted towards the higher risk operators, products and activities while including a random element to ensure that all operators, activities and products are considered.
The official control programme covers all FBOs, including those involved in import, transport, storage, manufacture, retail and final use of animal feeds. Verification of FBOs' traceability systems is an important component of the official inspection programme.
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