Northern Ireland's agricultural industry was boosted yesterday by an EU decision to lift the export ban on meat and dairy products from the North, imposed because of foot-and-mouth disease.
The North's Minister for Agriculture, Ms Brid Rodgers, announced regional status had been secured and the export of live pigs and sheep could also resume.
The EU standing veterinary committee in Brussels reached the decision because no outbreak of the virus had occurred in the North for six weeks. "This is an excellent development. It means we can now resume exports of both live animals and food products previously banned by the EU," she said.
Exports of lamb, pork, dairy products and pigs will resume as soon as the decision is formally adopted by the EU, which could be tomorrow. Exports The Irish beef industry received a major setback yesterday with the announcement by the Egyptian government that it was extending its ban on beef from the EU until October 7th, writes Sean MacConnell, Agriculture Correspondent.
The Egyptians banned EU beef imports late last year when mainland European countries began to report cases of BSE which set off panic in the markets.
Ireland, a major exporter of beef to Egypt, saw the trade, which was worth £200 million last year, disappear.
The unexpected announcement caught the industry by surprise.
A Department of Agriculture spokesman said it would be redoubling its efforts to convince the Egyptians that controls in Ireland are the best in the world and they should consider taking our beef.
The president of the Irish Farmers' Association, Mr Tom Parlon, said he was very concerned about the Egyptian decision because Ireland had been a loyal supplier of beef to that market for many years.
He called on the Government to mount a major diplomatic and marketing campaign to reinforce the fact that Irish controls on BSE are effective.
A spokeswoman for An Bord Bia, the Irish food board, said the work of convincing the Egyptians that Irish beef is safe was ongoing and would intensify in what was a key market for Irish beef exporters.