THE Irish chicken shipments which were found by the Swedish authorities last week to be contaminated with salmonella were destined for the Muslim market in Sweden.
The Swedish authorities told the Irish Embassy in Sweden yesterday that salmonella had been found in halal-slaughtered birds being imported from Ireland.
The Irish factory from which the chickens came has not yet been officially identified, but a spokesman for one company, which exports to Sweden, said he was not aware that there had been any problem with product going to Sweden.
The Irish Food Board moved swiftly yesterday to reassure its Swedish customers that Irish food exports were safe, and a board spokesman said retailers in Sweden were aware of the reports but were not concerned about them.
The trade in processed poultry between Ireland and Sweden is estimated to be worth £1 million a year.
A Department of Agriculture spokesman said yesterday that it had received no formal complaint from the Swedish veterinary authorities but had already started its own investigations following informal contacts.
He said he did not know what would happen to the shipment but suspected that it might be destroyed or returned to Ireland at the expense of the exporter.
Meanwhile, stringent controls are being placed on the Border to prevent the spread of Newcastle Disease in poultry which has been identified in a number of poultry units in Northern Ireland.
A Department of Agriculture spokesman in Dublin said it was working closely with the Northern authorities to prevent the spread of the highly contagious disease to the Republic.
Almost 100,000 birds have died or been destroyed on poultry farms in the past 10 days, and large exclusion zones have been set up.
Four outbreaks of Newcastle Disease have been confirmed on farms in Cos Tyrone, Armagh and Antrim.
A possible fifth is being investigated.
It was being stressed by agricultural experts that there was no danger at all to the public from the disease.
Department veterinary staff are working hard in an attempt to contain the spread of the virus.
All birds on affected farms have been destroyed.
Exclusion zones of 10 kilometres have been set up around each farm with restrictions of movement and vaccination of all poultry within them.