Skip to main content

FSAI Act & Related Legislation

FSAI Act and Related Legislation

The relevant legislation that governs and guides the FSAI is listed below.

  • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998

    An Act to provide for the establishment of a body to be known as the Food Safety Authority of Ireland or Údarás Sábháilteachta Bia na hÉireann and to define its functions and to amend the Radiological Protection Act, 1991, and to provide for related matters. [8th July 1998]

    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (No. 29 of 1998)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Establishment Day) Order, 1998 (S.I. No. 540 of 1998)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1999 (Commencement) Order, 1999 (S.I. No. 204 of 1999)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First and Second Schedules) (No. 1) Order, 2000 (S.I. No. 184 of 2000)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First and Second Schedules) Order, 2002 (S.I. No. 580 of 2002) 
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of Second Schedule) Order, 2003 (S.I. No. 735 of 2003) 
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2004 (S.I. No. 210 of 2004) 
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2005 (S.I. No. 827 of 2005) 
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First and Second Schedules) Order 2006 (S.I. No. 320 of 2006)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First and Second Schedules) Order 2006 (S.I. No. 839 of 2007) 
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2010 (S.I. No. 494 of 2010 )
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First and Second Schedules) Order 2011 (S.I. No. 724 of 2011)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2012 (S.I. No. 346 of 2012)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First and Second Schedules) Order 2014 (S.I. No. 390 of 2014)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First and Second Schedules) Order 2017 (S.I. No. 107 of 2017)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2018 (S.I. No. 568 of 2018)  
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2020 (S.I. No. 173 of 2020)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2021 (S.I. No. 152 of 2021)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2021 (S.I. No. 543 of 2021)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2022 (S.I. No. 310 of 2022)
    • Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act, 1998 (Amendment of First Schedule) Order 2023 (S.I. No. 222 of 2023)
  • Current list of food legislation and official agencies

    The Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act 1998 contains two schedules:

    • The First Schedule lists pieces of EU or Irish legislation that have been made ‘food legislation’ under the Act;
    • The Second Schedule lists the State agencies that have been made ‘official agencies’ under the Act.

    Laws that have been made food legislation can be included in service contracts with these official agencies for enforcement of the food legislation. Additional powers of enforcement are available for food legislation.

    Both Schedules can be changed by orders made by the Minister for Health under section 5 of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act. These section 5 orders are listed in the section above. Each section 5 order makes additions and/or deletions to either or both Schedules.

    Some other Irish laws are also food legislation under the Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act 1998:

    • Regulations made under the European Communities Act 1972 to implement EU food laws can be ‘deemed’ to be food legislation when they are made;
    • Regulations made under Section 54 of the Health Act 1947 [as amended by section 25 of the Irish Medicines Board (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2006] are also food legislation because the Health Act 1947 is already food legislation.

    For convenience, the current comprehensive list of food legislation and official agencies is compiled by the Department of Health into the following document:

  • The British-Irish Agreement Act, 1999

    An Act to make provision in relation to the North/South Ministerial Council, the implementation bodies and the British-Irish Council, established under and in furtherance of the agreement between the government of Ireland and the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland done at Belfast on the 10th day of April, 1998, to make provision for the purposes of the international agreement establishing the implementation bodies and to provide for related matters.

  • District Court (Food Safety) Rules, 2004

    These rules were made by the District Court Rules Committee with the concurrence of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform and amend the District Court Rules 1997 (S.I. No. 93 of 1997).

    The rules prescribe District Court procedures in respect of applications under the FSAI Act, 1998 in relation to information required by the FSAI to exercise its functions and to non-compliance with "Improvement Orders".