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Updated 12 minutes ago
THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE advises that all medical devices in the ViraPro range be returned to the supplier “as a precaution”.
Last night, the Department of Education issued a notice that the ViraPro hand sanitizer used in schools had been recalled by the Department of Agriculture.
The recall resulted in the closure of several schools today. Circle K also remembered the hand sanitizer.
Speaking at the Dáil today, Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue said that yesterday he was first informed about the problem of hand sanitizers and that concerns about a lack of ethanol and excess methanol led to the recall of ViraPro products. .
Concerns about the disinfectant were related to variable and inadequate levels of ethanol in the product, as well as the detection of methanol at varying levels in some samples, ”said the Minister al Dáil.
Inadequate levels of ethanol would render the product “ineffective,” he added.
More importantly, frequent use of a methanol-containing hand sanitizer can cause nausea, dermatitis, eye irritation, upper respiratory tract irritation, and headaches.
The Department of Education issued a statement tonight to say that the Department of Agriculture formally notified it of the matter yesterday afternoon.
As soon as the Department of Agriculture provided the information and a formal statement, the Department of Education issued a warning notice to schools and the media.
He said that it was necessary to contact all schools because the Department did not receive a list of the schools that had purchased this product from the vendor when requested.
McConalogue said his department was taking the matter very seriously and would continue to investigate the matter. He also added that more communication could have been given to other Departments on the matter:
I am very clear that it would have been much more appropriate for my Department to have been followed up with a public notice and communications with other Government Departments immediately after issuing a recall notice to the company on October 16.
Medical devices
In a statement tonight, the Department of Agriculture said that in the course of the investigation into the hand sanitizer issue, “it has emerged that several other sanitary products under the Virapro brand were not on the Department’s approved list for biocides.” .
“The company in question has been advised to withdraw all of these products from the market,” the department said.
Therefore, the Department advises, as a precaution, that all medical devices in the ViraPro range must be returned to the supplier.
Members of the public are advised to stop using these products because they are not authorized for use.
The Department said that all medical devices containing biocides must have a clearly visible PCS or an IE / BPA or EU number on the label.
“A Department investigation into this matter is ongoing,” he said.
The opposition reaction
Sinn Féin spokesperson on agriculture, Matt Carthy, and education spokesperson, Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire, have said that serious new issues have arisen following Dáil’s statement.
Sinn Féin sought a Dáil debate on this issue. Instead, we received a statement late at night with no opportunity for questions or answers.
In fact, Minister McConalogue’s statement raised even more questions than we originally had following the confirmation of ViroPro’s withdrawal on Thursday night.
Why was the product not recalled, or at least the concerns publicized, upon receiving the notification from OLAF on 25 September? Why, when there was concrete evidence last week that this product was dangerous, was this information not taken immediately?
“The agriculture minister told Dáil that he did not find out about these events until Thursday. That exposes a systematic flaw within your department. Does the minister have any control over his department?
Throughout this debacle, a dangerous product has been used extensively in schools and other public settings. There must be responsibility for that. “
A chronology of events
The hand sanitizer was included on their approved bio-bio products registry list on April 24 of this year.
McConalogue said part of the approval was based on containing 70% ethanol, a common standard for hand sanitizer products.
He said the European Anti-Fraud Office notified Revenues about the importation of a hand sanitizer product from Turkey to Ireland, which had been found to contain “excessive levels of methanol.”
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Revenue told the Department of Agriculture this on September 25.
“Arrangements were made to test the shipment and several other shipments that have already been imported into Ireland from the same supplier.
“All shipments that were analyzed were stopped pending the results of laboratory analysis,” said the Minister al Dáil.
Department officials took samples from product batches at different storage locations between September 30 and October 2, and the samples were sent to the Department’s laboratory.
Preliminary results were received on October 8 and gave “sufficient reason to believe that this product should not be launched on the market pending further investigation.”
On October 8, “compliance notices” were issued to four warehouses that had shipments of the hand sanitizer. Six additional samples of the product were taken and sent to the laboratory on October 9.
It became clear that some of this product was not alcohol-based and therefore my Department had not approved its use.
He added that the products did not meet the approval standards, “particularly with regard to the presence of methanol.”
The company was immediately instructed to keep all products in its possession and to recall all remaining products bearing its name.
On October 20, ViraPro hand sanitizer was removed from the Department’s biocide registry, and on the same day officials had “informal contact” with the Department of Education’s procurement service.
On October 21, the HSE was informed.
“On Thursday October 22 [yesterday], it became clear on the basis of the company’s communication that the recall of the products had not yet started. “
At that time, my Department took the additional step of issuing a statement outlining the potential risks that ViraPro presents and advised members of the public not to use it, and also issued a formal notification to the Department of Education, Health and Children.
With reporting by Hayley Halpin
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