About 70% of eggs produced in Ireland are quality-assured
Agriculture and Food Minister Joe Walsh said this was thanks to the dedicated work of the Irish Egg Association and Bord Bia.
It was a great achievement that the Egg Quality Assurance Scheme had now achieved the recognised international standard of EN 45011. He said he had no doubt that the additional guarantees inherent in that standard will further consolidate the market position of quality-assured eggs.
Mr Walsh also announced that a quality assurance scheme for poultry meat was at an advanced stage and should be operational shortly. “I would urge all concerned to press ahead with the final stages of this initiative, as I believe that this will be a very useful selling point for Irish product in order to maintain a competitive edge,” he said. He said the consumer was entitled to take for granted that what they were purchasing was safe. “There is no premium attaching to safe food, but the consequences of shortcomings in this area can be catastrophic.”
Bord Bia chief executive Michael Duffy said poultry production levels were expected to increase by about 1% in 2002 and consumption looks set to rise by a similar percentage.
