Renaghan told the Irish Farmers Journal that Ireland’s self-sufficiency in egg production should have been its shield against contaminated eggs.

“Ireland is self-sufficient in egg production. It is obvious that a few suppliers that were supplied with non-Irish products have caused this,” he said.

“My hope is in the future that these businesses will stick to buying Bord Bia-approved eggs. If they did that in the first place, this issue would have never arisen in Ireland. There is no need to be buying eggs outside of Ireland,” he explained.

The FSAI confirmed on Thursday that a small quantity of imported eggs had been contaminated and Renaghan believes it is important to put the situation in context.

“It is important to clarify that this did not affect eggs for sale in supermarkets or shops. They are all 100% safe,” he said.

“It only affected a small number of catering companies and bakeries,” he continued.

FSAI

The FSAI has said that due to the very small quantity, risk to human health is minimal.

“The number of egg products imported is very small. The risk to consumer health is very low. Nevertheless, the FSAI will continue to trace any distribution in Ireland. Further updates will be provided as necessary,” it said.

Affected eggs

Fipronil is an insecticide which is not permitted for use around food-producing animals.

The news follows the discovery last week of contamination of huge numbers of Dutch eggs with the pesticide Fipronil, which can be toxic in large doses.

Up to 10m contaminated eggs may have been sold in Germany.

Read More

Fipronil found in small quantity of imported eggs

Millions of eggs recalled from European shelves due to banned pesticide