Wednesday September 26 2007/Irish Independent
BLUETONGUE disease would have a far greater impact on the country than foot and mouth -- effectively shutting down the country's livestock industry -- Agriculture Minister Mary Coughlan said yesterday.
If it spread to Ireland there would be a ban on the movement of all animals to slaughter on other farms, and they would have to be kept indoors at dawn and dusk because those were the hours the disease was transmitted, she said.
The minister voiced her concerns as a third animal tested positive in Britain for the disease.
The midge-borne virus was discovered near Lowestoft, Suffolk, the UK's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed.
The first two cases were found on a farm near Ipswich.
Ms Coughlan said she was "very, very seriously" concerned at the spread of bluetongue from continental Europe to Britain, but thankfully there was already a ban on animal movements from Britain because of foot and mouth.
Because bluetongue was transferred by midges rather than from animal to animal it was difficult to control and a slaughtering out policy would not work, with a vaccine or very cold weather the only real hopes.
"I don't want to have any scaremongering, I think the most important thing is that farmers brief themselves and veterinarians brief themselves on the signs to look out for," said Ms Coughlan.
Global warming did appear to be a factor in its spread as bluetongue was a sub-Saharan disease that had moved to Spain and become endemic, then north into the rest of Europe.
"I don't want to have a Doomsday scenario in talking about inevitabilities, but people will have to appreciate it's in the realms of possibility no matter what policies we put together, it's very difficult to stop a midge going from one part to another."
On FMD there had been several more cases within the surveillance zone in England and it was important that an all-Ireland approach was kept in place.
To this end, yesterday the minister held discussions with Northern Ireland Farm Minister Michelle Gildernew.
Meanwhile a survey by the Irish Farmers Association of 1,340 visitors to the Ploughing Championships revealed that 91pc wanted a ban on Brazilian beef imports because of FMD and poor food safety controls.
"The results send a resounding message to Minister Coughlan and the EU Commission that people reject the double standards that allow Brazilian beef imports into Europe," said IFA President Padraig Walshe.
The results were a landslide rejection of EU policy on Brazilian beef and Ms Coughlan could not ignore the depth of public feeling, the IFA said.
Nine out of 10 people surveyed also felt the Food Safety Authority of Ireland had failed in its duty to enforce compulsory labelling on the origins of beef on restaurant menus.
New bug forces Galway boil water notice
Friday, 14 September 2007 21:57, RTE News
Another instance of water contamination has arisen in Galway city, affecting some 15,000 residents in the Knocknacarra area.
Yesterday evening Galway City Council instructed local households to boil all tap water before drinking it or using it for food preparation.
The council says the water has been contaminated by E.coli and the problem is not related to the recent water contamination caused by the cryptosporidium bug.
The decision by Galway City Council to issue this boil water notice for the Knocknacarra area comes following advice from the local division of the Health Service Executive.
The advice was given after E.coli was detected in one water sample.
The council says the localised contamination was due to infrastructural works in the area.
No illnesses have been reported, and the council says the water supply is currently being treated.
But for now the council is advising 15,000 householders in the area to boil their water until further notice.
The council has stressed that this boil notice is not related to the cryptosporidium bug which earlier this year affected up to 90,000 households in Galway and was finally cleared up last month.
Another instance of water contamination has arisen in Galway city, affecting some 15,000 residents in the Knocknacarra area.
Yesterday evening Galway City Council instructed local households to boil all tap water before drinking it or using it for food preparation.
The council says the water has been contaminated by E.coli and the problem is not related to the recent water contamination caused by the cryptosporidium bug.
The decision by Galway City Council to issue this boil water notice for the Knocknacarra area comes following advice from the local division of the Health Service Executive.
The advice was given after E.coli was detected in one water sample.
The council says the localised contamination was due to infrastructural works in the area.
No illnesses have been reported, and the council says the water supply is currently being treated.
But for now the council is advising 15,000 householders in the area to boil their water until further notice.
The council has stressed that this boil notice is not related to the cryptosporidium bug which earlier this year affected up to 90,000 households in Galway and was finally cleared up last month.
Shoppers get health warning as prices cut by stores
Friday September 14 2007, Irish Independent
SUPERMARKETS could damage their customers' health by constantly forcing down the prices they pay suppliers for food, warns Ireland's leading food safety expert.
There is an inherent conflict between constantly shaving prices and insisting on the highest standards of quality and traceability, said Professor Patrick Wall of UCD, who is also Chairman of the European Food Safety Authority.
"Will the supermarket multiples face up to their responsibilities and realise that constantly shaving prices does affect standards? Sourcing the cheapest product on the global market puts their brands, reputation and share price at risk, but more importantly could damage their customers' health," he said.
It cost money to comply with animal welfare and food safety standards and unless farmers were adequately compensated, this could threaten their commercial viability, he told the Agricultural Science Association conference in Trim, Co Meath last night.
Concerns raised by Irish farmers about Brazilian beef imports were reasonable as similar standards should apply for EU and non-EU producers if consumers' health was to be protected and if the global battle for market share was to be a fair fight, Professor Wall said.
However, the Irish industry also needed to seriously examine if it was 'best in class' when it came to animal health status, he said, noting a number of disease problems that had emerged in recent years, posing a threat to Irish food exports.
Retail Ireland, the division of IBEC which represents supermarkets, rejected Professor Wall's comments. "Some days retailers are criticised for prices being too high, today the criticism is that prices are too low.
"The truth is that retailers in Ireland provide high quality food at reasonable and affordable prices to a customer base that is both discerning and well-informed.
"It is simply wrong to suggest that retailers would do anything to compromise their customers' health. The consumer is central to everything that the retail sector does." said its director, Torlach Denihan.
SUPERMARKETS could damage their customers' health by constantly forcing down the prices they pay suppliers for food, warns Ireland's leading food safety expert.
There is an inherent conflict between constantly shaving prices and insisting on the highest standards of quality and traceability, said Professor Patrick Wall of UCD, who is also Chairman of the European Food Safety Authority.
"Will the supermarket multiples face up to their responsibilities and realise that constantly shaving prices does affect standards? Sourcing the cheapest product on the global market puts their brands, reputation and share price at risk, but more importantly could damage their customers' health," he said.
It cost money to comply with animal welfare and food safety standards and unless farmers were adequately compensated, this could threaten their commercial viability, he told the Agricultural Science Association conference in Trim, Co Meath last night.
Concerns raised by Irish farmers about Brazilian beef imports were reasonable as similar standards should apply for EU and non-EU producers if consumers' health was to be protected and if the global battle for market share was to be a fair fight, Professor Wall said.
However, the Irish industry also needed to seriously examine if it was 'best in class' when it came to animal health status, he said, noting a number of disease problems that had emerged in recent years, posing a threat to Irish food exports.
Retail Ireland, the division of IBEC which represents supermarkets, rejected Professor Wall's comments. "Some days retailers are criticised for prices being too high, today the criticism is that prices are too low.
"The truth is that retailers in Ireland provide high quality food at reasonable and affordable prices to a customer base that is both discerning and well-informed.
"It is simply wrong to suggest that retailers would do anything to compromise their customers' health. The consumer is central to everything that the retail sector does." said its director, Torlach Denihan.
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