NI Pork Processing Resumes

No pigs from Northern Ireland were fed contaminated meal it has been revealed.

The Food Standards Agency said no dioxins have been found in pork from the province and as a result, the processing of pigs has resumed at Northern Ireland's biggest pork factory.

Grampian Country Pork at Cookstown is working normally and farmers have been told the company will clear the backlog of pigs on farms by this Friday.

Meanwhile, all 36 Tesco stores in Northern Ireland are re-stocking their shelves with pork products, all sourced from Northern Ireland, as of today.

However, almost a dozen local premises have processed pork from the Republic and sold it here.

Retailers were initially advised to remove all Irish pork products from their shelves and consumers told not to eat this meat.

Now it is hoped pork sales in Northern Ireland will pick up again quickly as full production is again underway, but it has emerged 1,400 pork processing jobs may have been lost in Ireland over the contamination concerns.

Sausages, bacon and other pork meats have been recalled in relation to an alleged oil contamination at an Irish plant, tainting the meat with harmful substances.

Retailers and food producers were earlier advised to "temporarily remove products manufactured in Northern Ireland from sale until they can satisfy themselves that these products don't contain pork sourced from the Republic of Ireland after 1 September".

While the Food Standards Agency said adverse health effects were "only likely if people are exposed to relatively high levels of this contaminant for long periods", Food Safety Director Dr Andrew Wadge said yesterday that measures were in place to remove affected pork from shops.

He said: "If anyone's not clear about where the product comes from - they've got it in their fridge or in their freezer - then our advice is to take that back to the point of purchase and get a refund."

Meanwhile, workers union SIPTU said over 6,000 jobs were at risk in the pork industry across the Irish Republic, which is valued at around £350m every year.

Locally, last night, Stormont Health Minister Michael McGimpsey said members of the public had been left at best "confused" following a "lack of clarity" on the pork contamination scare.

Mr McGimpsey said: "I realise that there has been a lack of clarity about advice on the consumption of pork and pork products. In the Republic of Ireland, all pork products which originated from the Republic and from Northern Ireland have been removed from shelves.

"Yet, in Northern Ireland, initial advice from the FSA to the public here has been not to eat these products, but no formal recall notice has been sent to retailers. Despite this advice, a number of retailers have already taken the decision to remove products from their shelves until they are certain that none of them are contaminated."

Also adding to the calls for clarity, the Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association said yesterday that the situation regarding pork needed to be resolved quickly "before serious damage is done to consumer confidence".

See: Pork Lay Off Rises To 1,400

(PR)(BMcC)