Members Present

• Deirdre Kennedy (DK) (alt for Kevin Brennan)
• Sinéad Moran (SM) (alt for John Brennan)
• Darina Allen (DA)
• John Kent (JK)
• Kevin Sheridan (KS)
• Dan Hegarty (DH)
• Aoife nic Giolla coda (AGC)
• Niamh Hegarty (NH)
• Sally Barnes (SB)
• Mary Regan (MR)

FSAI Staff Present

• Micheál O’Mahony (MOM) (Chair)
• Hannah Wise (HW) (minutes)
• Rob Phillps (RP)
• Jim McBrien (JM)
• Cristina Fernandez Bugallo (CFB)

Apologies

• Dave Lang
• Blathnaid Bergin
• Kevin Brennan
• John Brennan
• Liam Handy

• Ella Ryan (ER) Invited Guest 

1.    Welcome & Introduction

MOM welcomed all to the meeting and extended a special welcome to guests Ella Ryan, Development Manager at Centre of Food Culture Ireland and Jim McBrien who recently joined FSAI as Senior Technical Executive, Food Imports and Exports.

2.    Minutes of Previous Meeting

The minutes of the previous meeting had already been approved over e-mail as agreed at the previous meeting and will be circulated to members and published on the FSAI website.

3.    Terms of Reference & Member Selection proposal

A draft Terms of reference (ToR) were circulated to the Forum before the meeting, proposing changes to procedures of selecting members of the forum 

The proposal included
A public call for expressions of interest will be made via the FSAI website.
Half of the forum membership will change at each cycle.  FSAI will select members and propose those to the Forum.
There was a discussion on the selection process of members and what sectors should be represented.
Members asked that proposals for new members be put before the Artisan group.
MOM noted that the draft proposed membership would be a matter for FSAI, but decisions will be informed by Artisan input. In particular the forum could input on any particular food sectors to be prioritised for representation, Furthermore FSAI proposals for membership would be brought to the forum.
Some forum members felt that the proposed term length of 6 years is too long and suggested automatic resignation or re-application after two years. Other members felt 6 years to be acceptable but agreed that keeping members up to date is important.
Some forum members emphasised the need for attendance and participation and suggested a system of automatic removal/resignation if members fail to attend a set number of meetings. 
There was a discussion on the format of Forum meetings and the potential of having one in-person meeting per year at an alternative venue. A public sector venue would be preferable.
The planning of meetings was discussed with a request for adequate notice for FSAI, and confirmation of attendance or not, by members. 
Action 1: Written inputs on ToR to be submitted within 2 weeks from minutes.
Action 2: Review highlighted (red) text in ToR again.
Action 3: FSAI provide more than 2 weeks’ notice for meetings — ideally 1 month.
Action 4: Attendance confirmations by members: 1 week before meeting.

4.    Introduction to Centre of Food Culture Ireland

Ella Ryan from Centre of Food Culture Ireland presented to the Forum about an upcoming project which centres around a directory for Artisan producers on their website.

KS was noted as one of the founding board members.

ER outlined the project for the group, including initial feasibility study and current governance developments.
The core focuses are education, connectivity, enterprise, and food culture. 

Centre of Food Culture Ireland hold several events with a notable one being their annual flagship festival: Samhain. 

They have held a successful meet the maker series (Artisan producers, learners, farmers). An example of this was “Meet the Cheesemaker” which consisted of showcasing origins, processes, and people behind the products. 

An active project is development of an Artisan producer directory, the purpose of the directory is to platform Irish producers, for consumers/chefs to log on and see a map of producers in Ireland.

The website features an interactive map of producers in which you can zoom in by location. It will include producer profiles, e.g., location, website, product list, images, info on direct visits. It will also be categorised into sections and searchable by keywords. It’s designed to be user friendly for both consumers and producers.
To register, producers need to fill out a form which includes questions on networks/memberships, business size, etc.

Find Centre of Food Culture Ireland website here: Centre of Food Culture | Boyne Valley

Action 5: The presentation and a link to the directory will be circulated to Forum members with the minutes.

5.    Honey Labelling Queries

There was a discussion on honey labelling issues, and certain labelling marketing health claims.

MOM noted that under the health claim legislation, such claims require supporting data; otherwise, they should not be made.

CFB and MOM clarified that the forum doesn’t deal with individual issues, and such complaints complete the FSAI advice line form. MOM also noted that there is existing material on the FSAI learning portal to assist food business operators develop their labels and avoid unjustified claims.

There was a discussion on a proposed regional beekeepers meeting where FSAI expressed willingness to attend in a previous meeting. MOM and CFB suggested format of a webinar meeting.

There was a discussion on quality marks.

AGC raised the idea of a quality mark for honey production, which was discussed previously at a forum meeting.

MOM reminded the forum about Bord Bia quality assurance schemes, and a previous discussion about the extent of commitment required by overall industry to justify creating e.g.  a new quality assurance for honey.
AGC proposed that small beekeepers nominate one or two representatives from each organization to form a subcommittee to explore this.

A potential meeting with the 3 groups and Bord Bia could be arranged.

There was a discussion on what constitutes “quality.”
MOM clarified that international honey standards exist, and EU legislation defines some chemical parameters, but none specific to Ireland.

DA highlighted the consumer difficulty in knowing what to look for.

AGC noted the historical context – 35 years ago, Federation of Irish Beekeepers’ Association produced a label for members producing only Irish honey.

Irish Beekeepers’ Association and other beekeeper groups also have similar labels, but none are official.

Note: Send honey labelling concerns directly to FSAI advice line.
Action 6 :Organise a webinar between FSAI and beekeepers (liaise with communications team).
Action 7: AGC to send concerns to FSAI and act as contact point.
Action 8: Reopen discussion with Bord Bia (MOM to contact).

6.    Poultry Issues Update

An update was provided on poultry issues which were discussed in the previous meeting.

MR described some issues that small poultry producers are facing, such issues include labour shortages, concerns about birds arriving from small holdings into organic farms, processing facilities around the country closing, leaving producers without processing facilities.

It was noted that rules and regulations remain the same: birds must be inspected live and post-mortem sampling carried out. Small producers are required to carry out salmonella tests which means longer holding time for birds. There is also a general lack of small abattoirs. 

Forum queries:
DA raised concern over difficulty in getting answers to poultry queries raised in the Forum.
There was a discussion on the progress made on this within the Forum, and it was noted that many of the issues are not under FSAI remit therefore progress is being made outside of the forum between a forum member and colleagues from Teagasc and DAFM. 
They are moving towards a proposal for a format such as an evening seminar for small poultry producers to address questions e.g. about mobile houses. It was noted that the legislation is changing, so definitive answers cannot yet be given. 

Regarding Salmonella testing of meat broilers, there was a discussion on the national legislation which changed mid-2024. Producers of small quantities for slaughter on their own farms are exempted form Salmonella testing, but moving birds elsewhere would be outside of the exemption so require Salmonella testing.  

DA questioned why chickens are sold in Ireland with salmonella and Campylobacter present. MOM clarified that the EU regulates salmonella in chicken meat, but much less stringent Campylobacter. The EU does not allow decontamination of POAO (products of Animal Origin). Poultry may also be marketed with skin-on.
DA noted that progress is being made on reopening abattoirs and will provide an update in the next meeting. 
KS added that the complex issue between butchers and abattoirs is being streamlined on the Artisan directory.
JK suggested further discussion at the next meeting.

Action 9: DA to update Forum members on recent developments regarding abattoirs reopening.
Action 10: MOM/HW to get MC to update Forum next meeting.

7.    Farmhouse Cheese Audit Checklist

DH noted that in late 2023, at the forum there had been a discussion about recognising within official controls of food safety the EU industry guideline on good hygiene practices for Farmhouse Cheese, (FACEnetwork) but it seemed there had been no significant progress since.

There was discussion on current fear in the industry due to product recalls. 
MOM informed the forum that DAF had made changes to their inspection protocols for small cheese producers from mid-2024. 

Concerns were raised that CAIS and Teagasc were not informed of the rollout. Mom acknowledged that producers might not necessarily be directly aware of what inspection protocol an inspector was using. 

There was a request from the Forum for an update from DAFM. MOM suggested identifying which problems are most affecting the industry and which issues FSAI could best address. FSAI expressed willingness to attend e.g. CAIS meeting to discuss specific issues e.g. Listeria, however it was hoped that a forthcoming seminar (15 October 2025 at Backweston) might give useful insight.

Action 11: FSAI/CAIS/Teagasc to regroup on this issue following Backweston seminar.

8.    Food Safety Culture Guidance

CFB provided an update on Food Safety Culture (FSC) guidance that was published and webinars that took place. 

The aim is to clarify what FSC means in industry/businesses and reduce fear around the concept. It focuses on behaviours and cultural aspects of food safety. The webinar will be uploaded to the FSAI Learning Portal.

FSC guidance document is now available; appendices include FSC questionnaires from FSAI and other organisations to assist food businesses. The goal is to implement FSC as a legal requirement.
Note: Food businesses in primary production are exempt from FSC as an explicit requirement.

Forum feedback on the guidance is encouraged.

Action 12: HW to Circulate link to the guidance note.
Action 13: Forum members to provide feedback and circulate guidance to the groups/people they represent.

9.    Official Control Consistency

Official control consistency was discussed as a recurrent issue that has been raised several times before and needs progress. 

The issue of scheduling a meeting with the third level institute was raised. Forum members suggested allowing more space (6 weeks) when proposing dates.
Action 14: Sub-group to come back to HW with dates.

Ultra-Processed Foods (UPFs) was discussed.
DA raised the concern that Ireland has the highest % consumption of UPFs in the EU, and that there is growing concern about this among producers and consumers.
Members stated that the Artisan sector is committed to producing non-UPFs and asked how the Forum can work together on this. 

Discussion on a submission to FSAI that day from Artisan Forum members, ‘Enabling Artisan Survival’
KS raised concern about inspectors’ approach – seen as policing force enforcing strict rules rather than cooperating with operators, for example, cafés importing frozen cakes, not subject to same regulations, fundamentally changing food culture.
SM agreed with this and noted the link with the FSC message. There is a fear of inconsistency between inspectors. DH agreed, noting the same fear among cheesemakers, e.g. when their inspector retires
MOM acknowledged the effort to create the submission received that day, and the obvious ambition to achieve an overall improvement in the interface between food safety official control and artisan food production, but FSAI would require time to consider the significant submission.

Action 15: HW to circulate document to other members.
Action 16: Members to coordinate and provide dates to HW.
Action 17: MOM: Next meeting can be devoted largely to this discussion (agreement from Forum).
Action 18: MOM: Potential for agency representation at next meeting.

10.    Any Other Business (AOB)

Discharge licenses: Deferred.
Action 19: Alternate member for Honey: AGC (pending ToR finalisation)