Watchdog says Wrights 'wild' fish was farmed
Tuesday March 24 2009
Wrights of Howth has been criticised by the Food Safety Authority for allegedly incorrectly labelling fish.
A batch of salmon which had been highlighted and labelled as 'wild salmon' was found to be farmed under DNA tests, a court heard yesterday.
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) brought the company and two directors of the firm to court for an alleged 42 breaches of the Food Safety Act 1998.
FINGERPRINT
Twenty two packets of salmon were found to have a "genetic fingerprint", meaning that the products were not wild, according to analysis by University College Cork (UCC).
Directors Mark Wright and Steve Foster, and the company Wright's of Howth, are each facing 14 summonses for allegedly wrongly labelling the products.
The FSAI said that random samples had been taken from the company's shop in Dublin Airport in April 2007 and that 22 samples of "Irish Smoked Wild Salmon" were sent for DNA identity to UCC via a company in Dublin.
FSAI audit manager Donal Cosens told Dublin District Court that the results from the tests discovered that the salmon was not wild, contrary to the labelling.
Mr Cosens said a prosecution was not carried out at this stage as the results were "an indicator". Further tests were carried out which confirmed the results, said Mr Cosens.
Mr Wright told FSAI audit manager, Pat Farrell, that he stood by the fact that the product was Irish salmon, Mr Farrell told the court.
Wrights of Howth has been in business since 1883 and has a number of shops throughout the country.
struck out
Three other summons taken by the FSAI were struck out by Judge Anne Watkin over the length of time taken to bring them to court.
The cases related to salmon alleged to have been listed as Irish but farmed in Scotland.
Prosecuting barrister Paul Anthony McDermott made a number of objections to Judge Watkin, stating that the judge was asking more questions of some witnesses than he was, and that it was "almost impossible" to give evidence.
The judge responded that Mr McDermott was trying to introduce hearsay evidence.
The case is to finish today.
- Caroline Crawford
