THE FOOD SAFETY Authority of Ireland has served a recall notice on all frozen food products of animal origin which have been imported into Iceland stores since 3 March.
This includes the immediate withdrawal of these items from all Iceland retail stores.
As a precaution, the FSAI is advising consumers not to eat any imported frozen food of animal origin bought from Iceland Ireland stores since 3 March.
Foods of animal origin are any food products that contain ingredients that come from an animal, such as chicken, meat, fish, eggs, and dairy products.
The FSAI said the enforcement action is “due to a number of identified breaches of food legislation and an ongoing investigation”.
This includes inadequate evidence of traceability of imported frozen food of animal origin in Iceland Ireland stores, as well as a “number of incidents of non-compliance with import control legislation in relation to frozen foods of animal origin”.
The FSAI added: “Some frozen food of animal origin has been imported into Ireland without pre-notification and completion of entry declarations and health certificates since 3 March.”
The FSAI has held discussions with the company and the investigation involves the Environmental Health Service of the Health Service Executive, the Department of Agriculture, and the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority.
Pamela Byrne, CEO of the FSAI, said these breaches of food law are “very serious”.
“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.
“As a precaution, we are therefore advising consumers not to eat imported frozen food of animal origin bought from Iceland Ireland stores since 3 March, 2023.
Byrne 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.”
This issue was identified by Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine Border Control Post officials, in collaboration with Revenue Customs, due to 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 detaining consignments and issuing an import control notice to return them to Britain or destroy them.
The FSAI said officials at Dublin Port continue to assess the detained consignments to determine compliance with legal requirements and import controls.
The FSAI has informed the European Commission and food standards agencies in the UK are sharing relevant information to support the investigation.
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