Use black bins for pork say council
Advice on proper disposal
Fingal County Council has stated that brown bins should not be used until the situation is rectified. PCBs are man-made chemicals that were banned in 1979. They effect the immune and reproductive systems and can, in certain cases, cause cancers.
'This is a precautionary measure and is a temporary measure in response to the current situation concerning pork and pork products,' a Fingal Couny Council spokesperson stated.
Normal disposal arrangements for this type of waste may resume after the current situation has been resolved.
Minister of State for Food Policy Trevor Sargent said he would be working with An Bord Bia to ensure that quality pigmeat products - including those organically certified - could be brought back into the market as quickly as possible.
He said the Government had acted swiftly to deal with the situation.
Councillor Alan Farrell (FG) had called on the Minister for Food and all local authorities to put in place a mechanism to dispose of contaminated pork products in a safe manner.
'The contaminated pork products already in homes throughout the country must be disposed of in a safe manner in order to ensure that dioxins contained within the meats do not further contaminate our soil.' The National Consumer Agency has confirmed that consumers are entitled to be refunded on pork meats and products containing pork purchased from retailers after September 1st.
Consumers are advised to follow the instruction from the Food Safety Authority of Ireland regarding the return of pork/pork products to point of purchase.
'If consumers are disposing of these products in their household waste, please do not place these items in the brown bins,' the spokesperson added.
