The Minister for Health's recommendation that beef on the bone be removed from the shops will be raised in the Dail. Mr Cowen yesterday rejected criticism that his move had damaged the beef industry. The Government is also being criticised for not exerting sufficient pressure on the British government to end the port blockades.
Yesterday, Fine Gael's health spokesman, Mr Alan Shatter, called on Mr Cowen to clarify the nature of the risk he and his Department believe is posed to Irish consumers.
He also asked the Minister whom he consulted before making such a public recommendation, and the degree of risk to consumers of contracting the new variant CJD from beef on the bone.
Ms Liz McManus, the Democratic Left spokeswoman on health, said the handling of the "latest CJD health scare" by the Minister had been "inadequate, unclear and incomplete".
Consumers were entitled to more information than they had received, she said. An expert advisory group, representing consumers, the grocery trade, manufacturers and the medical profession, should be formed quickly to inform the public about any possible link between CJD and bone marrow, she suggested.
Speaking in Tullamore, the Minister said he had merely repeated the recommendation made to him by the experts on the CJD committee and it was his duty to do so. "This is a public health issue and the public must be informed and I have told the public about the recommendation and that is my duty.
"The fact is that from what I can gather the consumer has not turned away from beef because of anything I have said. People are entitled to know," he said, adding that his responsibility was that of Minister for Health and, if there were concerns about a drop in sales, it was a matter for the Minister for Agriculture.
The president of the Irish Cooperative Organisations Society, Mr Michael O'Dwyer, said the Minister's statement served no purpose other than to cause unnecessary confusion in the minds of consumers, to undermine their confidence, and it had the potential to do enormous damage to the reputation of Irish beef, especially in vital European and Third World markets.
He said the ICOS was fully committed to traceability, accountability and responsibility with regard to food safety, and there was no scientific or medical evidence to support the removal of Irish beef on the bone from the market.
The Minister was also criticised by the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association, which said he should have let consumers make up their own minds on the issue.
The IFA repeated its call for a substantial EU intervention to support cattle prices, which have fallen following the Welsh farmers' blockade and the new CJD warning. Since the middle of last week prices for bullocks have fallen by up to 4 pence to 83 pence per pound, and the IFA claimed there was no demand at marts for heifers for the home market.
Mr Raymond O'Malley, chairman of the IFA's national livestock committee, said substantial beef intervention should be sought by the factories to support beef prices at a minimum of 85p per lb.
Yesterday too, the farm organisations warned of a growing income crisis on farms following publication of Central Statistics Office estimates of a 5.1 per cent decline in farm income this year.
Meanwhile, the demands for Government action on the blockades of British ports accompany criticism of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Andrews, for taking a relaxed approach to the problem.
Mr Dick Spring said Mr Andrews's "apparently lackadaisical and lethargic approach to this issue is unacceptable. This is not only a diplomatic issue. There are very real trade implications for the Irish economy in general and the Irish agricultural sector in particular arising from this blockade.
"It is therefore important that the Government acts in a coherent and concerted fashion in order to resolve the problems that exist."
Fine Gael's Mr Gay Mitchell called for an urgent meeting of the Ireland/UK Inter-Governmental Conference under the Anglo-Irish Agreement to end the imports blockade.