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Agri-food watchdog begins legal action

The Agri-Food Regulator says that it has issued legal proceedings against a business in the agri-food supply chain in relation to an alleged breach of the rules on unfair trading practices.

Neither the business nor the sector concerned has been identified.

The new watchdog is an independent statutory office established under the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Act 2023, with the objective of promoting fairness and transparency in the agri-food supply chain.

In an update on its activities, the regulator said that it had, for the first time, carried out several on-site compliance inspections using legislative powers available under the 2023 legislation.

Egg information

These inspections are aimed at ensuring that the policies and procedures, systems, internal control mechanisms, and arrangements relating to unfair trading practices – and any mechanisms to address deficiencies – are complying with the 2023 act.

The regulator has also published an initial report on the egg sector, but its chief executive Niamh Lenehan said that not all retail businesses had yet provided it with the information requested.

“As a result, it has not been possible for the regulator to produce the type of report that was envisaged at the beginning of this process,” she said, adding that the body would continue to engage with businesses involved in the sector, with a view to supplementing the report.