When mainstream media takes an interest in the meat industry, it is usually bad news for those involved. Last weekend, the spotlight fell on Brazil with the BBC reporting that the country had dispatched rotten meat to its customers.

Problems can and do arise with food production from time to time and that is why there are rigorous traceability and recall systems in place to deal with an incident if it arises.

We have had our own experiences with dioxins and more recently the horsemeat incident, which although an EU-wide issue, was initially identified by the Irish Food Standards Authority inspection system.

What is alarming about reports from Brazil isn’t that they had a problem with some consignments of meat, it is the fact that it wasn’t until the conclusion of a major police investigation that they became aware that there was even an issue.

On Friday last in Brussels, a comprehensive police document was in circulation, while DG Santé, the part of the European Commission responsible for health, only learned that there was a problem developing in the media.

It also appears from the briefing that a senior director provided to the Commission’s agriculture committee on Tuesday that their initial inquiries didn’t provide the answers and that they had to keep chasing the issue.

This is where the real trouble arises. The issue of a problem with a consignment or consignments of meat is one thing; the fact that the relevant authorities are in the dark about an issue that was the subject of a detailed police investigation is another more serious matter.

At this point, we have to ask how the EU can have confidence in produce coming in from a third country, where the authorities delegated by the EU to assure EU production standards are met, appear to have failed completely.

Northern Ireland MEP Diane Dodds has added to the debate, pointedly asking what has been happening with the inspectors and how long the issue has been going on, and emphasising the need to ensure a level playing field when negotiating trade deals.

These are excellent points and ones that Northern Ireland MPs will have to forcefully make in Westminster if the United Kingdom carries though with the Theresa May’s list of target countries – including Brazil – post-Brexit.