A quantity of Brazilian beef treated with a banned carcinogenic hormone entered the Irish food chain last year.
The Irish Farmers Journal broke the story a short time ago – read their findings in full here – and say a consignment came to three food businesses in the Republic of Ireland from Brazil via Northern Ireland in September 2025.
Deputy Editor of the weekly agri publication Adam Woods spoke to our Brian Redmond on The KCLR Daily, but first was local farmer James;
IFA President Francie Gorman said confirmation today that Brazilian beef containing banned hormones entered the Irish food chain and is now subject to an official recall by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland should be a wake-up call for the Irish Government; “This shows that the undertaking from Brazil about the processes they have in place are completely flawed and wholly ineffective,” he said. “This EU audit which uncovered these hormones is getting worse and worse, with more EU countries being embroiled. The EU must publish the full details of this immediately and before there is any vote on the Mercosur deal,” he said. “In 2024, another EU audit found that the Brazilian system to stop hormones entering the EU food chain could not be relied upon. We were told by the EU that Brazil implemented an action plan to address this. Yet, hormones have now entered the EU and Irish food chain. This has to be a red line for the Irish Govt on Mercosur,” he said. “The question is are Brazil misleading the EU or are the EU misleading their citizens. We need full disclose immediately,” he said.
Before the news broke, we heard concerns on KCLR News from MEP Cynthia Ní Mhurchú regarding the impending EU vote on the Mercusor trade deal which is due this Friday.
Kilkenny woman Josephine O’Neill who is President of Macra too is not happy with proposals;
Sinn Féin TD for Carlow Kilkenny Natasha Newsome Drennan had also outlined her views;
