A Carlow poultry farmer won a landmark court case against the Department of Agriculture on Tuesday 9 December, in Carlow District Court.

John Fitzgerald was appealing two compliance notices served in August 2024, one on 1 August under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 and the second on 2 August under the European Union (Food and Food Hygiene) Regulations 2020.

These required a recall of duck eggs supplied from the farm, the publishing of trade notifications and the cessation of the supply and sale of duck eggs. Movement restrictions were also imposed.

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This followed the presence of salmonella being detected in duck faecal samples obtained from the farm some days earlier. Mr Fitzgerald raised concerns around the sampling procedure.

In her judgment, judge Catherine Hayden stated: “The bar set for an authorised officer to serve a compliance notice, ie that they have formed the opinion that there is or may be a risk of disease, is a very low one.”

Thus, judge Hayden continued: “It is incumbent on the respondent [the Department of Agriculture] to observe fair procedures and ensure that it has conducted itself to the highest standards prior to that opinion being formed.

“It is clear from the evidence that the manner in which the respondent obtained its evidence fell far short of its sampling protocol.

“It is my view that the requirements for authorised officers to be appropriately trained and for them to comply with the legislative regime and the SOPs [standard operating procedures] which were put in place on foot of EU regulations are indeed integral and mandatory and the respondent’s failure to comply with the SOP cannot be ignored.”

Procedural defects found

She also found that “in circumstances where there were fundamental procedural defects in taking the samples, it was unreasonable in this case not to arrange for appropriately trained officials to attend and resample the duck houses”.

Judge Hayden added remarks criticising the level of training the Department officials who conducted the sampling had received.

John Fitzgerald was represented in court by barrister Seán D Rafter, acting on the instructions of solicitor Alexander Rafter. Complimenting the court on a comprehensive and detailed decision, Alexander Rafter said: “This decision effectively says there is an obligation on the state to follow its procedures.”

ICSA general secretary Hugh Farrell welcomed the court’s decision, and believes it has implications for the Department of Agriculture’s entire inspection regime.

“Farmers rights to fair procedure have been upheld today,” he said. “The Department need to engage with farmer representatives to address the serious shortcomings identified by judge Hayden,” he told the Irish Farmers Journal.