An Bord Bia Act , 1994

PART I Preliminary

1 Short title.

1.—This Act may be cited as An Bord Bia Act, 1994.

2 Interpretation.

2.—(1) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires—

“agricultural products” means meat, milk, eggs, cereals and other field crops, fish, poultry, rabbits, deer and edible horticultural produce;

“the Board” means An Bord Bia established by this Act;

“the chief executive” means the chief executive of the Board appointed under section 32;

“the dissolved body” means Córas Beostoic agus Feola;

“edible horticultural produce” means fruit and vegetables, whether fresh or processed, including potatoes, herbs, edible fungi and nuts, and also includes honey;

“the establishment day” means the day appointed as such under section 5;

“exporter's licence” and “exporter's permit” mean respectively, a licence and a permit granted by the Minister under the Agricultural Produce (Fresh Meat) Act, 1930;

“food” means edible products, including drink, whether in an unprocessed, processed or composed state, and includes agricultural products;

“levy” means levy under this Act;

“levy period” in relation to levy means a period of one month beginning on the first day of that month;

“livestock” means bovine animals, sheep, pigs, deer, poultry, rabbits and goats and such other species of animals as may be specified from time to time by the Minister by regulations;

“meat” means the meat, offal and edible by-products in the slaughter of bovine animals, sheep, pigs, deer, horses, poultry, rabbits and goats and such other species of animals and such products as may be specified from time to time by the Minister by regulations;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry;

“poultry” means fowl, turkeys, guinea fowl, ducks, geese, quails, pigeons, pheasants, partridges and the meat thereof;

“prescribe” means prescribe by order or regulations as the case may be;

“superannuation benefits” means pensions, gratuities and other allowances payable on resignation, retirement or death.

(2) In this Act a reference to a section or Schedule is to a section or Schedule of this Act and a reference to a subsection is to a subsection of the section in which the reference occurs, unless the context otherwise requires.

3 Orders.

3.—(1) The Minister may by order revoke or amend an order made by the Minister under any provision of this Act other than section 5.

(2) Every order to which subsection (1) applies shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and if either House, within the next twenty-one days on which that House has sat after the order is laid before it, passes a resolution annulling the order, the order shall be annulled accordingly but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

4 Expenses.

4.—Any expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART II An Bord Bia

5 Establishment day.

5.—The Minister shall by order appoint a day to be the establishment day for the purposes of this Act.

6 Establishment of An Bord Bia (The Irish Food Board) and dissolution of Córas Beostoic agus Feola.

6.—(1) There shall stand established on the establishment day a body to be styled and known as An Bord Bia, or in the English language The Irish Food Board, to perform the functions assigned to it by this Act.

(2) The Board shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and an official seal and power to sue and be sued in its corporate name and, with the consent of the Minister, to acquire, hold and dispose of land or an interest in land and to acquire, hold and dispose of any other property.

(3) The seal of the Board shall be authenticated by the signature of its chairman, or by the signature of a member of the Board authorised by the Board to act in that behalf together with the signature of an officer authorised by the Board to act in that behalf.

(4) Judicial notice shall be taken of the seal of the Board and every document purporting to be an instrument made by and to be sealed with the seal of the Board (purporting to be authenticated in accordance with this section) shall be received in evidence and be deemed to be such instrument without proof unless the contrary is shown.

(5) On the establishment day, Córas Beostoic agus Feola shall stand dissolved and the Córas Beostoic agus Feola Act, 1979, section 52 of the Abattoirs Act, 1988, and the Córas Beostoic agus Feola (Amendment) Act, 1988, are hereby repealed with effect from that day.

7 General functions of Board.

7.—(1) The functions of the Board shall be to promote, assist and develop in any manner which the Board considers necessary or desirable the marketing of Irish food and livestock.

(2) The Board shall have all such powers as are necessary or expedient for its functions.

8 Particular functions of Board.

8.—Without prejudice to the generality of section 7 the functions of the Board shall be to—

(a) survey, investigate and develop markets and potential markets for food,

(b) collect and disseminate market intelligence and provide information and advice in relation to supply and demand and market trends and trade opportunities in food,

(c) conduct or provide for the conducting of reviews, surveys, symposia, analyses and studies in relation to trade in, and markets and potential markets for, food,

(d) provide or arrange for the provision of publicity, advertising and promotional campaigns for the purpose of encouraging the increased consumption of food or particular categories of food and for the purpose of expanding trade in food,

(e) establish, equip and operate, and provide for the establishment, equipment and operation of, and assist in the operation of, exhibitions, show rooms, information bureaux and similar establishments for the purpose of encouraging increased consumption of food or particular categories of food and for the purpose of expanding trade in food,

(f) publish and distribute or provide for the publication and distribution of magazines, journals, reports and similar documents for the purpose of encouraging the increased consumption of food or particular categories of food and for the purpose of expanding trade in food,

(g) operate such quality assurance schemes as may in the opinion of the Board, be appropriate to the Board's functions and conducive to maintaining or improving the quality of all or part of any category or categories of food and, if so requested by the Minister, carry out evaluations of quality assurance schemes operated or proposed to be operated by other persons or bodies and applicable to all or part of any category or categories of food,

(h) encourage or promote the undertaking by other persons or bodies of such actions as may, in the opinion of the Board, be appropriate to the Board's functions and conducive to maintaining or improving the quality of all or part of any category or categories of food,

(i) administer such schemes, grants and other financial facilities requiring the disbursement of European Union Funds as may from time to time be authorised by the Minister with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance.

9 Transfer of functions.

9.—(1) On the establishment day, those functions of An Bord Glas which relate to the export marketing of edible horticultural produce shall stand transferred to the Board.

(2) (a) The Minister may by order assign to the Board such powers and responsibilities for the exercise of any function being a function relating to the marketing of food or livestock conferred on any body established to exercise that function as the order may prescribe.

(b) An order under this subsection shall not be made without the consent of any Minister having responsibility in relation to that body and subject to the provisions of any law under which that body is established.

(c) An order under this subsection may include provision for the employment by the Board of members of the staff of any body to which the order relates who are designated by that body for such employment.

(3) Whenever the Minister proposes to make an order under this section, a draft of the order shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the order shall not be made until a resolution approving of the draft has been passed by each such House.

10 Conferral of additional functions.

10.—The Minister may by order assign to the Board such additional functions as the Minister considers to be incidental to or consequential on the functions assigned to it by this Act.

11 Exercise of functions.

11.—The Board shall, in respect of the promotion, assistance or development by the Board of the marketing of any food or the provision of any services in relation to which another body has any function, act in co-operation with that body and in this regard shall comply with any directions issued to the Board by the Minister following consultation with any other Minister having functions in relation to that body.

12 Charges for services.

12.—(1) Subject to subsection (2), the Board may make such charges as it considers appropriate in consideration of the performance by it of its functions, the provision by it of services and the carrying on by it of activities.

(2) The determination of the amounts of charges referred to in subsection (1) shall be subject to the approval of the Minister.

(3) The Board may recover, as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction, from the person by whom it is payable any amount due and owing to it under subsection (1).

13 Subsidiary boards.

13.—(1) The Board shall by order made with the consent of the Minister establish a subsidiary board for meat and livestock and shall authorise it to exercise any function on behalf of the Board, including a function in respect of levy, relating to meat and livestock.

(2) The Board shall, on the direction of the Minister and may, with the consent of the Minister by order set up subsidiary boards for other functions of the Board and, to the extent that the Minister may specify, authorise any such subsidiary board to exercise any function, including a function in respect of levy, on behalf of the Board.

(3) An authorisation under subsection (1) or (2) shall be subject to such conditions as the Minister, or the Board with the consent of the Minister, may specify and shall be without prejudice to the right of the Board to exercise the specified functions itself.

(4) The Board shall, on the direction of the Minister, and may with the consent of the Minister by order revoke or amend an order made by it under any provision of this section.

(5) Without prejudice to subsection (1) of this section the Board may, out of funds at its disposal (including the proceeds of a levy pursuant to this Act), advance money to a subsidiary board for the purposes of the functions which it is authorised to exercise under this section.

14 Membership of Board and term of office of members.

14.—(1) The Board shall consist of the following members, that is to say, a chairman and nine ordinary members or such greater number of ordinary members not exceeding eleven as the Minister may prescribe.

(2) The chairman of the Board shall be appointed by the Minister.

(3) The ordinary members of the Board shall be appointed by the Minister, one of whom shall be an officer of the Minister.

(4) One ordinary member shall be appointed on the nomination of the Minister for Tourism and Trade.

(5) The chairman and the persons appointed to be ordinary members shall be persons having knowledge or experience of the food industry and of consumer requirements.

(6) The chairman shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of his appointment.

(7) The persons who are first appointed by the Minister to be ordinary members of the Board shall hold office as follows:

(a) three of such members shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of their appointment,

(b) three of such members shall hold office for the period of four years from the date of their appointment, and

(c) the remaining members shall hold office for the period of five years from the date of their appointment.

(8) The members of the Board who are to hold office for the periods specified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (7) shall be decided by lot to be drawn in such manner as may be decided by the Minister.

(9) Every person who is appointed by the Minister pursuant to this section to be an ordinary member of the Board, other than a first member of the Board, shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of his appointment.

15 Membership of meat and livestock subsidiary board and term of office of members.

15.—(1) The meat and livestock subsidiary board shall consist of the following members, that is to say, a chairman and eleven ordinary members.

(2) The chairman, who shall be a member of the Board, shall be appointed by the Board with the consent of the Minister.

(3) The ordinary members shall be persons engaged in or having knowledge of the meat and livestock sector and of consumer requirements and shall comprise—

(a) five persons who shall represent the producers of livestock who shall be appointed by the Board with the consent of the Minister on the nomination of such organisations as the Minister considers to be representative of such producers,

(b) four persons who shall represent the meat export trade who shall be appointed by the Board with the consent of the Minister on the nomination of such organisations as the Minister considers to be representative of such export trade,

(c) one person who shall represent meat traders who sell meat by wholesale or retail for consumption in the State who shall be appointed by the Board with the consent of the Minister on the nomination of such organisations as the Minister considers to be representative of such traders, and

(d) one person who shall represent the livestock export trade who shall be appointed by the Board with the consent of the Minister on the nomination of such organisations as the Minister considers to be representative of such export trade.

(4) The chairman shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of his appointment.

(5) The persons who are first appointed by the Board to be ordinary members shall hold office as follows:

(a) four of such members shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of their appointment,

(b) four of such members shall hold office for the period of four years from the date of their appointment, and

(c) the remaining three members shall hold office for the period of five years from the date of their appointment.

(6) The members who are to hold office for the periods specified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (5) shall be decided by lot to be drawn in such manner as may be decided by the Board subject to the limitation that not more than two persons representing the producers of livestock and not more than two persons representing the meat export trade shall retire in any one year.

(7) Every person who is appointed pursuant to this section to be an ordinary member other than a first member shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of his appointment.

16 Membership of other subsidiary boards and term of office of members.

16.—(1) A subsidiary board established under section 13 (2) shall consist of a chairman and not fewer than five or more than eleven ordinary members.

(2) The chairman who shall be a member of the Board shall be appointed by the Board with the consent of the Minister.

(3) The ordinary members shall be appointed by the Board with the consent of the Minister.

(4) The persons appointed to be ordinary members shall be persons engaged in or having knowledge of the sector or sectors in respect of which functions are authorised to be exercised by the subsidiary board and of consumer requirements.

(5) The chairman shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of his appointment.

(6) The persons who are first appointed by the Board to be ordinary members shall hold office as follows:

(a) one-third (or the next whole number) of such members shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of their appointment,

(b) one-third (or the next whole number) of such members shall hold office for the period of four years from the date of their appointment, and

(c) the remaining members shall hold office for the period of five years from the date of their appointment.

(7) The members who are to hold office for the periods specified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (6) shall be decided by lot to be drawn in such manner as may be decided by the Board.

(8) Every person who is appointed pursuant to this section to be an ordinary member, other than a first member, shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of his appointment.

17 Eligibility of outgoing member.

17.—A member of the Board or the subsidiary board for meat and livestock or of a subsidiary board established under section 13 (2) whose term of office expires by the effluxion of time shall be eligible for re-appointment.

18 Conditions of office.

18.—(1) The Minister may at any time remove from office a member of the Board.

(2) The Board, with the consent of the Minister, may at any time remove from office a member of any subsidiary board.

(3) A member of the Board may resign office by notice in writing to the Minister and the resignation shall take effect on the date on which the Minister receives the notice.

(4) A member of any subsidiary board may resign office by notice in writing to the chief executive of the Board and the resignation shall take effect on the date on which the chief executive receives the notice.

(5) A member of the Board or any subsidiary board shall be disqualified from holding and shall cease to hold office if that member is adjudged bankrupt, or makes a composition or arrangement with creditors, or is convicted of any indictable offence in relation to a company, or is convicted of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty, whether in connection with a company or not, or is the subject of an order under section 160 of the Companies Act, 1990.

19 Casual vacancies among members of Board and subsidiary boards.