Ulster Unionist Assembly Member for Mid-Ulster Sandra Overend has questioned the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, on the steps being taken to preserve Northern Ireland’s excellent reputation for producing high-quality food; ensure that retailers in future source more food products from Northern Ireland; and make sure that farmers and processors get a better return for their products.

Mrs Overend, who is the Ulster Unionist Party spokesperson for the Economy, stated,

“Northern Ireland has an excellent reputation for producing high-quality food, and there are many examples of that. However, we must not let the ongoing situation regarding horse meat negatively affect those who are producing our local meat products. All evidence suggests that they are complying with the relevant safety and quality regulations and bringing first-class local produce into the food chain. However, we cannot overlook the fact that incidents surrounding meat products are still ongoing. For example, my colleague Jo-Anne Dobson, following questions to the Agriculture Minister, was able to find out that horse meat had been found in burgers supplied to the Greenmount and Loughry campuses of the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE).

“In recent weeks massive chains such as Lidl, Tesco, Asda and Aldi all experienced incidents of potential contamination, and we heard that burgers containing horse meat had been supplied to hospitals and schools in Northern Ireland.

“Investigations must continue by the Food Standards Agency and especially by some retailers, who have displayed an alarming lack of vigilance in some cases in order to uncover the full extent of horse meat in food processed in Northern Ireland. Only then can we begin to restore and regain the confidence of consumers in the long term.”

Mrs Overend continued,

“It is for all of these reasons that I questioned the Minister on the actions that she is taking to ensure that the matter is being fully investigated and on how she is reassuring the many overseas importers of meat from our producers that our products remain at the highest standards.

“The Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment can act to ensure that our processors and farmers are getting as good a return as possible on their products. For example, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has confirmed that a groceries code adjudicator will, hopefully, be up and running by mid-2013. If enacted properly, it has the potential to benefit some 311,000 farms across the United Kingdom, and it must ensure that supermarkets treat all their suppliers fairly and within the law.

“I was glad to hear that the Minister plans to meet with the adjudicator, and that she believes, as I do, that it is vital that the body will have the necessary powers so that we can achieve fair incomes right along the supply chain.

“The main way for people to ensure that they are buying quality meat is to buy local. Therefore, it is fundamentally important that all of us, including the Minister, continue to encourage people to do that as much as possible.”