Transfer of OVs & meat hygiene inspection to FSS

SAMW President, Andy McGowan, said: “We welcome the fact that FSS has made a clear decision on this issue and that everyone can now focus on how the official controls (OC) procedure is run rather than who runs it.

“Our principle concern has always focused on the need for member businesses to be provided with an OC service which is 100% effective and flexible with all inspection staff being deployed in the most efficient manner possible.

“The red meat processing sector already carries a heavy cost burden for meat inspections which many competitive food processors do not face. This puts us at a financial disadvantage which needs to be addressed by the Government, in terms of applying the same inspection rules and costs across all food processing areas, and by FSS, in terms of ensuring that the current procedure is run on the most cost-effective basis possible.

“We have repeatedly stated that any available vet and meat inspection resource which is found to be surplus to our fluctuating business needs should be made more nimble, allowing all under-deployed resource to be immediately reallocated to undertake public health inspection requirements in other food businesses and industries. The current inflexible and rigid system is an inefficient use of public funds, which we hope the new delivery structure will address.”

Click on transfer announcement in the heading to access the FSS statement