Government plans food guarantee

The Government is planning a compulsory national scheme to guarantee domestic and international consumers that Irish food is …

The Government is planning a compulsory national scheme to guarantee domestic and international consumers that Irish food is of the highest quality, The Irish Times has learnt.

The move which is being drafted by the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Mr Ned O'Keeffe, is designed to position more Irish food products in the premium end of the market.

Mr O'Keeffe said that the agri-food sector - which accounts for 14 per cent of the Republic's GDP - received a severe shock with the BSE crisis. With almost 85 per cent of production being exported, he added, it was no longer possible for Irish food to rely merely on the country's green image, or good marketing, in an increasingly sophisticated European market place.