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SUPERVALU IS TO become the first retailer in Ireland to adopt a national DNA trace-back programme for its bacon to ensure it’s Irish.
The retailer came up with the idea after recognising weaknesses in the paper based traceability systems following the pigmeat dioxin crisis.
The Irish Farmers Association partnered with IdentiGEN to build the world’s first national DNA databank of boars, to prevent co-mingling of Irish and non-Irish pork.
SuperValu says they will use this system on all its rashers, ham and bacon, both prepack and over the counter.
The program will also form part of the Bord Bia quality assurance program, with both Bord Bia and IFA collecting and testing samples from SuperValu products on a monthly basis to ensure compliance with country of origin labeling.
“The idea behind this system is to increase the sales of Irish product in the domestic and export markets by providing the consumer with a cast-iron guarantee, backed by science, that the product is of Irish origin,” said chairman of the IFA national pigs and pigmeat committee, Pat O’Flaherty.
Last year, SuperValu’s sales included €182 million worth of Irish meat and poultry – the equivalent of 78,000 cattle, 130,000 lambs, 12.1 million chickens and 191,000 pigs.
SuperValu serves over 2,000,000 customers every week and has 198 stores nationwide.
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Seems like a good idea. Pig farming is a big employer is rural disadvantaged areas and gets no grants from EU or Irish government. Unique in the farming industry. The problem for Irish pig farmers is that they are very stringently regulated as regards conditions in units, records of medicine administered, etc. H&S officers make regular, unannounced checks to farms. Yet pork and bacon is being imported from other countries where the same regulations are not being enforced and the product can therefore be sold much cheaper than the Irish product. So the Irish pig farmer is at a double disadvantage – it costs more to raise his pigs but he is competing with an inferior product which costs less to produce so can be sold cheaper to the consumer. If Supervalu carry this through the Irish consumer should support it.
Mmmmmm Bacon….
Have been fasting since yesterday since I have to get blood tests in an hour.
But once I’m home my DNA is going to be half beef
Bring on the needle.
I don’t want to go,I hate needles.
Time to take a spoonful of cement Dave.
Ah dave.. Dont worry.. At least you are not a pig heading to the slaughterhouse
That will be the girlfriend later on Sinead.
I’d take a bottle of moonshine right now If you have it monty
Free range pork products from Woodside Farm in Cork. You will never eat another brand again! Absolutely gorgeous. Martin sells direct at Mahon Point Farmer’s Market on Thursday.
Gowan the local.
Was surprised yesterday when I went to my local supervalu and the majority of vacuum packed bacon was from Holland. The Bord Bia approved joints had taken up a very small portion of the (top) shelf, and were very small. Ended up going to the butchers counter for a decent joint where I noticed to DNA tracing notice. We need to be more conscious of where our meet is produced. Although Supervalu in general is pretty good, a little more visibility and quantity of Irish wouldn’t go astray.
Its not the first time super valu have annouced a plan like this did they not do the same with beef a while back ? But they gave up doing it when it became to expensive. Enfa or something like that! They sponsered the tipperary team.
that’s not entirely true, enfer scientific was the name of the company. i worked there, and they tested for BSE in cattle. under government contract enfer tested all animals over 30 months of age for BSE. super value gave an assurance that all beef sold was either under 30 months of age or tested by enfer. testing is no longer done as the threat of BSE infected meat is now non existent.
The DNA testing is coming in across the board, it is a bord bia initiative with support from the whole pig industry to prevent non irish pork being labelled as irish
To trace a pigs DNA is 1 good thing , but way aren’t pigs allowed to be free on the land ? I never seen pigs free to roam here in Co Offaly ! Very sad indeed
Indeed Julie, anybody would think there was a reason for wanting to find out if the pigs were Irish-bred – like high quality or the meat, or high welfare standards, or something like that – when in face I believe the opposite is the case.
Our pig industry in Ireland is highly intensive, with the vast majority of pigs reared on factory farms. In these, pigs are kept inside large sheds with no access to outdoors, and conditions are often crowded and barren. Compassion in World Farming. http://www.ciwf.ie/farminfo/farmfacts_pigs.html Poor pigs – they are highly curious, social and intelligent animals whose natural behaviour is to be in family groups outdoors rooting around.
Not to mention what goes into their feed and so ends up in the meat – for example they are routinely fed anti-biotics on the off chance they may become ill, just to maximise profits – this goes into the meat. Hormones? Growth promoters, anybody? Yuck. I fail to see the quality in this.
Buy organic and free-range if you can find it!
Free range pigs are feasible. I used to laugh when I passed a farm in the UK where the pigs lived in hundreds of railway containers with the doors open. They were arranged in streets and you could see them gossiping on street corners. It looked just like the old aerial shot of Coronation Street albeit with mud streets. I’m sure we could imagine the conversations. Pigs are actually pretty intelligent animals and might have actually been discussing the afterlife.
They should do a DNA check on Brian Cowen
Sorry (why) I meant
The price for free range organic pigs would be to much and what would you do with the pigs on sunny days?you would have to put sun cream on everyone incase they get sun burned.
They should be supplied with huts like in the UK where they go in out of the sun Nelly
What did pigs do before man came along and invented the concept of been indoors?
there were trees for them to shelter under, they were woodland creatures
Another reason to bring back Ireland’s woodlands. Replace to Caoilte acidic forests.
Crime Swine Investigation.
Didn’t realise there was an Irish strand of DNA for pigs
It’s based on the profile of the male parent….all boars “active” in Ireland have been DNA tested
On the contrary Crim, pigs are quite clean animals and love washing themselves and water. With the proven cognitive ability of a three to four year old child, they are also one of the most intelligent. James Cromwell , the farmer in ‘Babe’ became vegan after working with multiple piglets he was so taken with them. Love that old dude.
I presume all pork sold in Clonskeagh is halaal.
Great news! Irish pigs will be forever grateful.
The smell of pork makes me Puke .Dirtiest animal on planet
Imagine you had a pet big named “babe”…. and one sunday morning you went to open your packet of rashers and realised, that there before you, was babe, sliced up real thin :)
I got you Babe,
@Criminal. Tell that to the Chinese.
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