BY AUSTIN LYNCH
After a few very worrying days for the local pork industry, and all the jobs connected to it here in Fermanagh, there was good news yesterday (Tuesday) as the Food Standards Agency (FSA) gave Northern Irish pork a clean bill of health.
Through its current investigation into pork, the FSA has received information to indicate that no pigs in Northern Ireland have consumed feed contaminated with dioxins.
However, 11 premises in Northern Ireland have received pork from the Republic of Ireland and this meat has been processed and placed on sale in Northern Ireland.
The Agency is advising consumers that if they have purchased since 1st September, pork or pork products labelled Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland, they should dispose of them or return to the retailer.
"We have advised retailers and caterers to temporarily remove products manufactured in Northern Ireland from sale until they can satisfy themselves that these products do not contain pork sourced from the Republic of Ireland after 1st September."
The FSA said pork products will reappear on sale once retailers and caterers have carried out appropriate checks.
However, the FSA said it is aware that contaminated feed has been fed to some cattle in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The agency said they are currently doing tests to assess what levels of contamination, if any, are present in affected herds and further updates would be available to consumers as soon as possible.
An FSA statement said, "We would expect the risk of contaminants in beef to be significantly lower than in pork. Cattle consume a wider variety of feeds and the way their bodies process the feed is different which makes the risk of contamination much lower."
Tesco issued a statement stating that, as of yesterday (Tuesday) morning, they would be re-stocking their shelves with local pork.
In a statement they confirmed all 36 Tesco stores are re-stocking their shelves with Tesco brand pork products sourced from Northern Ireland.
"Local company, Cookstown, supplies Tesco with Tesco brand fresh pork products solely from animals born, reared and processed in Northern Ireland.," Tesco Commercial Manager, Cliff Kells said.
"We are delighted to get the all clear from the FSA and are re-stocking our shelves this morning with Tesco own-brand products sourced locally.
As of yesterday morning Dunnes Stores in Enniskillen said they were still following the guidelines, so no pork from northern or southern Ireland was available for sale and they were offering customers a full refund on pork products purchased since September. But a spokesperson for Dunnes Stores said they were waiting for more information on the developing situation.
SDLP MLA Tommy Gallagher said that the industry will be relieved following confirmation from the Food Standard's Agency that Northern Ireland pork is free from any contamination of dioxins.
"After a few days of confusion, worry and hardship for the pork industry I very much welcome confirmation that Northern Ireland pork is safe. It is now essential that pork processors are immediately allowed to get back to work and to get pork products back on the shelves," Mr Gallagher said.
The scare is being blamed on the wrong type of oil being used at an animal feed factory. A inspector from the Irish Agriculture Department said the type of oil used in a burner to recycle food products into animal feed was 'inappropriate' and that, in turn, pigs have been given animal feed contaminated with toxic chemicals.
The alarm was raised when high levels of dioxins were found in slaughtered pigs which had been fed the product from a Carlow company. This prompted the immediate recall of all pork produced in the Republic since September.
Over the weekend supermarkets stripped their shelves of Irish pork products and householders were advised to either bin any pork they had or to return them to the shop for a refund.
Dioxin food contamination can come from two sources - animal feed or from the environment. In this case feed from one source tested positive for polyclorinated biphenyls (PCBs) at between 80 - 200 times the recommended safety level. However, health chiefs have said any risk to the public is minimal due to the limited time frame the pork products have been on sale.
