Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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464. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the extent to which all food and food products imported into Ireland continue to be checked with a view to production hygiene standards and animal husbandry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17295/22]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Food products placed on the European marketplace are covered by a range of legislation designed to ensure that products supplied to consumers are of the highest safety standards. My Department plays a part in the enforcement of this legislation along with Competent Authorities in other Member States, other Irish Government departments and State Agencies such as the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) and the Health Service Executive.

The import of products of animal origin from third countries is governed by a comprehensive and robust legislative framework laid down at EU level, controlled by Member States in the first instance, and audited by the European Commission’s Directorate General for Health and Food Safety to ensure compliance with all of the relevant food safety standards. The legislation imposes health and supervisory requirements designed to ensure that imported products meet standards equivalent to those required for production and trade between Member States.

Veterinary checks are carried out by staff from my Department on consignments of foods of animal origin imported from third countries at designated Border Control Posts. All such consignments are subject to documentary and identity checks in addition to physical checks. This includes sampling of products, carried out according to European regulations. Import control procedures on products of animal and fish origin are highly prescriptive and are strictly audited by the Directorate to ensure compliance. Inspection finding reports are published on the Directorate General for Health and Food Safety’s website.

This comprehensive and robust legislative framework and the checks carried out by the relevant competent authorities across EU member states ensure that imports met the requisite food safety standards.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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465. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the extent to which any attempted importation of food or food products not up to Irish and European standards has been identified in each of the past five years to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17296/22]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Figures derived from the EU Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES) indicate that less than 1% of food or food products imported into Ireland and requiring checks at the border by officials in my Department, were identified as not meeting EU standards for entry into the Single Market. The precise numbers are 22 in 2020; 282 in 2021 and 105 in the first quarter of 2022 (increase in 2021 reflects increased number of controls required with the ending of the UK transition period).

Figures are not available in the system for the years prior to 2020. This is likely to be as a result of the move from an older version of TRACES (TRACES Classic) to a more updated version (TRACES NT).