Irish meat is free from banned growth promoters

DESPITE high-level monitoring at farm and factory levels, no residues of EU-banned hormonal growth promoters were found in tests carried out by the Agriculture and Food Department last year.

The Department confirmed this yesterday when it released the results of the tests carried out under the National Residue Monitoring Plan.

Tests covered bovines, pigs, sheep and poultry, as well as farmed deer, aquaculture and horses.

The Department said the absence of banned hormonal growth promoters in Irish beef and other meat is reassuring for consumers, reflecting rigorous enforcement in past years and the responsible approach being adopted by farmers.

During 2002, thirteen persons were convicted by the courts of offences under animal remedy laws, with five of them being sentenced to prison terms.

Fines totalling 22,000 were also imposed.

Almost 75,000 samples were taken on a targeted and suspect basis from eleven domestic food-producing species.

Tests were carried out at officially approved laboratories, covering eighteen distinct residue groups, which fall into three broad categories.

These include banned growth-promoting hormones and beta-agonists, approved veterinary medicines and environmental contaminants.

The Department said in overall terms as regards domestic production, the level of positive samples was 0.53% (398 out of 74,665 samples).

This is in line with low levels found in recent years 0.58% in 2001 and 0.45% in 2000.

The overall positive level in 2002 of 0.5% (366 positives out of 64,245 samples) was marginally below that of the previous year (380 positives out of 57,860 samples).