Garda + Siu Investigations on Equine Dna Must Be Done Speedily

IFA President John Bryan said the Garda investigation set up by the Minister for Agriculture following the discovery of another case of equine DNA is welcome and must be carried out in a speedy manner, and the culprits identified.

John Bryan said, “Farmers who meet exacting standards on traceability on a daily basis are very angry with the ongoing developments. The Minister needs to get this to a definitive conclusion quickly, and bring the full rigours of the law to bear on whoever is responsible”.

The IFA President said, “There must be a clear rule laid down as a result of this episode: any processor who wants to label beef burgers as Irish must exclusively use Irish raw material. The Department of Agriculture and the Food Safety Authority must also toughen up the controls around secondary processors, especially those which use imported raw material.”