The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has conducted over 37,000 checks on carcases at meat factories this year.
At each meat factory inspection, the DAFM stated that authorised officers will inspect approximately 100 carcases in a mechanical plant and 50 in a manual plant. This inspection covers compliance for both grading and presentation.
The DAFM confirmed to Agriland that it has completed a total of 424 factory inspections up to the end of July 2024, with checks on 37,588 carcases.
One factory, Dawn Meats Grannagh, has been fined for breaches of carcase trim specifications in 2024.
There were three carcases in breach of the trim requirement, resulting in a fine of €750, which has been paid.
Authorised officers of the Department of Agriculture (Carcass Classification Division) carry out inspections in all 33 factories that operate Beef Carcass Classification
All carcass inspected for carcass classification are also inspected for carcass trim.
Details of each factory fined for breaches of carcass trim specification from 2016 to date can be found in the table below:
Year Factories fined 2016 Kildare Chilling, Co. Kildare;
Traditional Meats, Co. Meath;
Meadow Meats, Co. Laois;
Kepak Kilbeggan, Co. Westmeath.2017 – 2018 Emerald Isle Foods, Co. Kilkenny;
Kildare Chilling Co. Kildare;
Kepak Clare, Co. Clare.2019 Kavanagh Meats, Co. Wexford. 2020 Ballon Meats, Co. Carlow. 2021 – 2022 – 2023 – 2024 (year-to-date) Dawn Meats Grannagh, Co. Waterford.
Between 2016-2020, eight factories were fined in relation to a total of 52 non-compliant carcasses.
They were: Kildare Chilling; Traditional Meats; Meadow Meats; Kepak Kilbeggan; Emerald Isle Foods; Kepak Clare; Kavanagh Meats; and Ballon Meats.
All fines that were issued to those meat factories have been paid, the DAFM confirmed.
During that time period, almost 237,000 carcasses were examined by inspectors.
The department did not detect any non-compliant carcasses in meat factories subject to inspections in 2021, 2022 or in 2023.
Last year in 2023, a total of 728 inspections took place across all factories resulting in checks on 64,346 carcasses.