Agriculture minister welcomes reopening of North African markets

THE reopening of the Moroccan market to Irish beef and live cattle and the Tunisian market to Irish sheep meat were announced yesterday by Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Minister Brendan Smith.

He said the Moroccan market had been closed to Ireland for almost a decade-and-a-half, and its reopening follows a successful visit here by a delegation of senior veterinarians from that country last March.

A certificate, which allows the export of live cattle from Ireland to Morocco, was agreed by both countries last month and a veterinary health certificate for the export of Irish beef to Morocco was ratified this week.