The Department of Agriculture and Food yesterday announced the publication of a Food Incident Management Plan to co-ordinate an official response to any food scare.
The plan, prepared by the Food Agency Co-operation Council, outlines the co-operation which must take place between the various agencies in the food sector in the event of a scare.
Dr Patrick Wall, head of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, said a recent example of the consequences of mismanagement of a food safety incident occurred in Belgium in 1999, when animal feed became contaminated with dioxin. The authorities there, he said, were unable to trace and recall the meat and dairy products from animals which had consumed this feed and the result was £1.5 billion worth of damage to the Belgian food industry. It had also led to the resignation of the Belgian ministers of health and agriculture and, later, the collapse of the government.
Dr Wall said nobody fell ill in this incident, yet the consequences were disastrous for Belgium.
"If a similar incident happened in Ireland, and dioxin contaminated dairy meal, a question mark would hang over all our dairy products from Kerrygold butter to Baileys' liqueur," he said.
The Belgian incident had been a "wake up" call for Ireland and the Food Agency Co-operation Council was set up under the aegis of the Department of Agriculture and Food, as a forum for all State agencies involved with the food industry, to promote co-operation and interaction.
He said a key element of the incident plan was early identification, prompt action and good communication. A co-ordinated approach by all agencies would not only result in more effective control, but the public would also be reassured knowing the incident was being efficiently managed.
He said in the event of an incident, the response would be led by one of the agencies involved, for instance the Department of Agriculture, in the case of contaminated animal feed.
The incident plan also places an onus on food businesses to notify the authorities if a food safety incident was suspected or unsafe products had been placed on the market.
Welcoming the plan, which was prepared by a committee chaired by Mr Padraic A. White, the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food, Mr Noel Treacy, said protection of the health of consumers was paramount in dealing with any incident.
He said the definition of a food incident ranges from the identification of unhygienic practices in a food business to biological or chemical contamination resulting from a terrorist event.