Minister Smith Underlines Commitment to Pig Sector
IRELAND - Speaking at the IFA National Pig Farmers' Forum in Athlone on Friday (16 October), the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith TD, emphasised his commitment to the Irish pig...

Compensation over Pork Contamination Paid Out
IRELAND - More than €100 million of taxpayers’ money has been spent by the Government on compensation to farmers and processors following last December’s pork contamination scandal.

Agriculture Minister Outlines Pig Scheme
IRELAND - Pig farmers have welcomed the €13m scheme for converting sows to loose housing - a scheme recently announced by agriculture minister Brendan Smith.

Ireland Needs Better Pig Meat Traceability
IRELAND - The present system for monitoring and tracing Irish pork products is ineffective and significant changes are required in order to avoid a repeat of the total recall of Irish pork products which...

Minister Expected to Act on Fallen Animal Commitment
IRELAND - Following a meeting with Minister for Agriculture Brendan Smith, the IFA Deputy President Derek Deane said the commitment given to him by the Minister Smith to provide real competition in the...

Responsibility for Fallen Animals Rests with Minister
IRELAND - IFA Deputy President Derek Deane has said there is room for significant cost reduction in the disposal of fallen animals. However, this can only be achieved by breaking the cartel that currently...

EU Law Redraft Could Mean Permit Costs Hike
IRELAND - A proposed redrafting of European Union legislation on integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC) could result in pig producers facing the prospect of paying an extra €25,000 per permit...

Irish Pork Trade to South Africa Resumes
IRELAND - The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith TD welcomed confirmation from the South African Department of Agriculture that they have decided to lift trade restrictions on...

Agri Minister Launches Animal Health Ireland
IRELAND - The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Mr Brendan Smith TD yesterday formally launched Animal Health Ireland (AHI), which aims to improve overall animal health standards and thereby...

IFA: Food Safety Task Force Established
IRELAND - Professor Patrick Wall of UCD today addressed the IFA Executive Council on the newly-established Food Safety Task Force announced by IFA President at the AGM on Tuesday (27 January 2009). ...

Irish Pork Sector Still Facing Tough Times
IRELAND - A clearer picture of the damage done to the €1 billion pork industry caused by the dioxin crisis emerged yesterday.

Ag Minister on Largest Ever Trade Mission to Japan
IRELAND - The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith TD is in Japan as part of the largest ever Irish trade mission to Japan.

Irish Dioxin Scare to Undergo Analysis
IRELAND - The Oireachtas agriculture committee inquiry into the handling of the pork dioxin crisis is to open this morning at Leinster House.

Document for Pigmeat Recall Compensation
IRELAND - The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith TD, has published a detailed scheme document setting out the terms and conditions governing the payment of compensation in respect...

IFA Welcomes Co-funded Disposal Scheme
IRELAND - IFA National Pigs Committee Chairman Tim Cullinan welcomed the significant announcement by the European Commission to provide co-funding for a disposal scheme for the pigs that have been blocked...

Clearance to Conclude Negotiations with Producers
IRELAND - The European Commission has cleared the way for a conclusion of negotiations with pig producers.

€50 to Secure Irish Pig Production
IRELAND - The Irish Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith, has welcomed the approval by the Dáil of a Supplementary Estimate for €50 million for his Department.

Co-funded Disposal Scheme for Irish Pigmeat Agreed
IRELAND - The EU countries have given their backing to further exceptional market support measures for the Irish pork market in line with the Presidency conclusions of the Brussels European Council of...

IFA: Pig Producers Expect Processing to Begin
IRELAND - IFA President Padraig Walshe has said there was relief among pig producers that a resolution had been found to the disruption of the industry in the past week.

New Farm Safety Action Plan Launched
IRELAND - A call for increased vigilance on farms was made yesterday by Mr Billy Kelleher T.D., Minister for Labour Affairs.

Producers Demand Immediate Reopening of Plants
IRELAND - Pig producers mounted a protest at the Department of Agriculture at 12 noon yesterday to demand an immediate re-opening of the country’s processing plants.

Dioxin Exposure No Cause for Concern
IRELAND - The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) stated its opinion that the data in relation to health risks for people exposed to dioxins does not provide cause for concern.

Ireland Moves Quickly to Tackle Dioxin Alert
EIRE - The Irish food safety and marketing authorities have been working flat out to limit the damage to the pig meat industry caused by the discovery that some products might have been infected with dioxins...

Update on Irish Pork and Bacon Products
IRELAND - The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) yesterday updated consumers on the national recall of Irish pork and bacon products.

Recall of Irish Pork and Bacon Product
IRELAND - The Government today announced that laboratory results of animal feed and pork fat samples obtained this afternoon by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) confirmed the presence of di...