All frozen food of animal origin is to be immediately recalled from Iceland stores in Ireland, the food safety authority has ordered.
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) served a notice on Metron Stores Limited – trading as Iceland Ireland – for an immediate withdrawal of all frozen food of animal origin which has been imported into Ireland since March 3.
Iceland has also been directed to recall all implicated products from consumers.
Anyone who has purchased frozen food of animal origin from an Iceland store since March is being advised not to consume it.
This includes not just meat-based products like chicken, beef and fish but also any food products that contain ingredients that come from an animal, such eggs and dairy products.
The FSAI said the enforcement action is due to a number of breaches of food legislation and an ongoing investigation.
Reasons given for serving the notice include inadequate traceability of imported frozen food and a number of incidents of non-compliance with import control legislation.
Dr Pamela Byrne, the CEO of FSAI, said discussions have taken place with the company surrounding “very serious breaches of food law”.
She said: “To date, while we have no reports of any illness associated with implicated products from Iceland Ireland stores, in the absence of the company providing valid and correct traceability documentation as required by the law, we have to take a precautionary approach to best protect consumers, as we cannot be fully confident of the traceability and safety of these imported frozen foods of animal origin.”
She added: “It is the legal responsibility of any food business importing food into Ireland to make the correct import declarations for the food they are importing.
“All food businesses must also have full traceability information on the food they are importing, producing, distributing and selling.
“Due to these breaches of food legislation and in the interest of consumer protection, this action has been taken.”
The FSAI further states that some frozen food of animal origin has been imported into Ireland without pre-notification and completion of entry declarations and health certificates since March 3.
The action is part of an ongoing investigation following identification of undeclared frozen food of animal origin with no accompanying documentation for goods being imported by Metron Stores Limited trading as Iceland Ireland into Ireland.
This has led to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine detaining consignments and issuing an import control notice to return the products to Britain or to destroy them.
Officials at Dublin Port continue to assess the detained consignments to determine compliance with legal requirements and import controls.
