IRELAND HAS already lost 4 per cent of its pigmeat exports with Russia and China's suspension of trade in pigmeat from Ireland. Total exports last year were worth €368 million.
In its first report on the global impact of the incident, An Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board, reported yesterday it was too early to assess the impact on EU markets for pigmeat which takes most of our exports.
"Customers of Irish pigmeat internationally have been largely preoccupied this week with the logistics around the product recall and, in the absence of new product going on to the market, it is too early to assess the precise impact of the recall on future trading levels," it said.
"It should be noted that exports of Irish pigmeat are predominantly in the form of ingredients for further processing and little or no significant fresh product is destined for direct supply to supermarket shelves," it went on. "Some outlets for Irish pigmeat outside of the European Union have suspended trade, however, including Russia and China which account for 4 per cent of Irish pigmeat exports.
"The restoration of market access in these instances will now be a major priority for An Bord Bia working with the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Irish embassies in the affected markets," it said.
The chief executive of An Bord Bia, Aidan Cotter, said a comprehensive communications programme for Irish meat was continuing in both the domestic and international markets following the weekend recall of pork and bacon.
He said more than three million labels for approved Irish pork had been distributed to approved pigmeat processors nationwide in the previous 24 hours.
"An Bord Bia's immediate priority is to help restore consumer confidence on the Irish market, while ensuring that the industry's international customer base is fully briefed on the high safety status of Irish meat," Mr Cotter added.
There was growing evidence of this yesterday as Irish pigmeat was available for purchase with the new labels in most of the major retail outlets across the State.
The Bord Bia market report had better news for the beef industry and it reported "general stability" in the beef market for Irish product in Europe, which takes 90 per cent of Ireland's output.
"In the UK, which accounts for over half of total exports, trade is continuing as normal.
"A similar situation prevails across most continental EU markets including the key French and Dutch, as well as the Spanish and Scandinavian markets," the report added.
"In some markets, including Italy, Germany and Poland, local and regional veterinary issues involving new testing procedures are affecting trade with some buyers reacting cautiously in terms of the levels of orders currently being placed.
"It is anticipated that these issues can shortly be resolved, enabling a return to normal trading," it concluded.
In the US, almost 36,000kg (79,000lb) of pork and pork products imported from Ireland were recalled by three US companies after they learned that the meat may have been contaminated with dioxins, the US department of agriculture confirmed.
The three firms recalling pork and pork products were Dawn International in Massachusetts; Tommy Moloney's Inc in New York and Rupari Food Services in Florida, the USDA's food safety and inspection service said.
The pork was sent to restaurants and retailers in Florida, California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Virginia.