This article is from page 34 of the 2007-11-13 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 34 JPG
THERE was good news for the Irish beef sector last week with the news that the Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs of the Republic of South Africa, Lulama Xingwana, had lift the ban on the importation of Irish beef. The ban, which has been in place since 2001, was lifted as a result of recommendation by South African experts who visited Ireland ETI ayeele
Commenting on the news, Irish Minister for Agriculture, Mary Coughlan, said that the positive news was the result of intensive efforts at political, diplomatic and technical Aon
She said that the Department of
Agriculture and the Irish Embassy in Pretoria have been working very closely on this issue for a number of years. During November 2006 the minister and her experts had a number of high-level meetings with South African cabinet members and their officials.
‘This is a very welcome decision as South Africa has been a traditional market for Irish beef. The decision by the competent authorities in the Republic of South Africa to re-open their market to Irish beef was taken following a detailed examination of the rigorous controls applied and reflects the high standards of food safety controls in place in Ireland,” she said.
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counterparts in South Africa had worked intensively on the technical documentation to facilitate trade and the necessary veterinary certificate had also been agreed.
Minister Coughlan also noted that senior veterinary officials from both sides have discussed detailed pro- posals for exchanges of skills and personnel to share best practice and experience in facing common chal- lenges in the food industry. Both Governments see the agri-food sec- tor as an important area with signifi- cant potential for trade growth and the creation of quality employment.
Senior experts will meet shortly to discuss an action plan on skills de- velopment.
Meanwhile, Minister Coughlan last
week welcomed the publication by the EU Commission of the Food and Veterinary Office mission to Brazil.
Coughlan said that this report will be very helpful in the overall process of ensuring equivalence. The minis- ter added that she was now calling for a discussion on the report within the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health.
A further FVO mission is taking place this month and Commissioner Kyprianou, who is responsible for health and consumer protection, has stated publicly that he will not hesi- tate to take appropriate protection measures if a product imported from a third country represents a risk for the health of EU consumers, live- stock or plants.