The Department of Agriculture has said salmonella has been confirmed on eight poultry farms in different parts of the country.
It said it is working closely with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland and the National Reference Laboratory for Salmonella in order to determine the cause of the outbreak.
“This investigation is on-going. Eight poultry flocks have been confirmed as positive for Salmonella Typhimurium...The flocks are located in a number of different locations,” it said.
It said that “all confirmed positive flocks have been restricted and are under department controls with the affected birds to be culled humanely and disposed of”.
The department has not yet clarified the number of birds affected by the outbreak or how the contamination may impact on supermarket food supply chains.
It said: “The department is working closely with the National Reference Laboratory for Salmonella and the producers in order to determine the cause of the outbreak and mitigate the risk of further spread. The investigation is on-going.
“The department is co-ordinating its response with the FSAI to reduce any potential for food safety risk”.
The spokesperson added that a National Salmonella Control Programme in poultry “operates routinely”, continuing that “this includes regular sampling by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and farmers at multiple points during the life stages of poultry flocks. This programme has been operating successfully over many years, with a very low prevalence of any Salmonella species in Irish broiler flocks”.
In response to the matter, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) said it has been notified of the outbreak and is liaising with the department officials.
An FSAI spokesperson said: “The FSAI has been notified by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine about an investigation it is carrying out into a possible Salmonella outbreak on a farm. The FSAI is liaising with the Department of Agriculture in its investigation.”
