100% physical inspection of beef imports from Brazil - Heydon
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) carries out physical inspections on all beef imported from Brazil into Ireland.
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon confirmed the protocol in response to a parliamentary question from Sinn Féin TD Natasha Newsome Drennan.
The Carlow-Kilkenny TD asked the minister what percentage of the 172t of beef imported into Ireland from Brazil in 2025 underwent food safety testing.
Brazil
Minister Heydon said that his department carries out import controls at specific points of entry to the European Union, known as Border Control Posts (BCPs).
"Beef consignments entering the EU from any non-EU country (also known as ‘third country’), including Brazil, must do so through an approved BCP.
"At the BCP, consignments are subject to official controls in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/625.
"These controls include documentary checks, identity checks and, where required, physical examinations and sampling.
"Consignments that satisfy these controls may be released from the BCP for placing on the market," he said.
The minister said beef consignments entering any EU member state, from Brazil or any other third country, are sampled and tested in accordance with a national, risk-based monitoring plan (NRCP) for residues and contaminants.
The national monitoring plan must be approved by the European Commission.
He added that sampling at BCPs is "targeted based on risk factors, including previous compliance history and EU-wide monitoring priorities".
"My department currently carries out 100% physical inspection of Brazilian beef imports entering the EU through Irish BCPs, which includes food safety and organoleptic [using human senses] testing and risk-based laboratory sampling.
"Where serious or repeated non-compliances are identified, intensified official controls may be applied, including increased and targeted sampling, additional physical checks, or other appropriate enforcement measures," the minister said.
Beef imports
Estimates from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that almost 41,000t of beef was imported into Ireland last year, a figure higher than any of the previous 10 years.
Of that total, nearly 37,000t was imported from the UK, followed by 871t from Spain.
The estimated data shows that 172t of beef was imported from Brazil in 2025, the highest figure in a decade.
In 2024, beef imports from Brazil stood at 97t, up from 40t in the previous year.
Ireland is estimated to have exported 458,996t of beef in 2025, valued at €3.6 billion.
