'Only European meat' served at Department of Education in Athlone

The Minister for Education, Hildegarde Naughton, has responded to a Dáil question about the origin of meat served in her Department's canteen in Athlone and indicated that, while not all of the meat there is Irish, it does all come from within Europe.

The origin of meat in the Irish food chain has become a high-profile issue in light of the proposed EU-Mercosur trade deal and the revelation that Dawn Meats, a company operated by Bord Bia chairperson Larry Murrin, has been importing Brazilian beef.

In a written Dáil question this month, Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín asked if there was a canteen in her Department's headquarters, and if the Minister could "provide assurances that all meat sold or provided in that canteen is of Irish origin".

In her reply, the Minister Naughton confirmed that "my Department operate a canteen service on our campus in Athlone," and that "the current service providers are a local company, A Slice Of Life Catering".

She provided a table in her response, setting out the various origins of different types of meat used by the service provider.

The table listed by the Minister showed that the bacon, rashers and pudding used was supplied by Lawlor's Foods in Athlone and originated from Northern Ireland.

The chicken used is from Germany and supplied by Casey Foods, while mince and other beef is Irish and supplied by Gillivan's butchers of Moate.

Pork sausages served at the Department's canteen in Cornamaddy are produced "using EU pork" and supplied by Loughnane's of Galway, the Minister said.

The Department of Education has had a premises in Athlone since the 1970s, and is one of the town's biggest employers.