No. 50/1936:

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE (EGGS) (AMENDMENT) REGULATIONS, 1936.

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE (EGGS) (AMENDMENT) REGULATIONS, 1936.

I, SÉAMAS O RIAIN, Minister for Agriculture, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by the Agricultural Produce (Eggs) Acts, 1924 and 1930, and of every and any other power me in this behalf enabling, do by this Order make the following regulations, that is to say:—

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Agricultural Produce (Eggs) (Amendment) Regulations, 1936.

2. In these Regulations the expression "the Principal Regulations" means the Agricultural Produce (Eggs) Regulations, 1931 (Statutory Rules and Orders, No. 23 of 1931), and every expression to which a particular meaning is assigned by those Regulations has that meaning in these Regulations.

3. The Interpretation Act, 1923 (No. 46 of 1923), applies to the interpretation of these Regulations in like manner as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of the Oireachtas.

4. The Principal Regulations shall be construed and have effect as if the following Article were inserted therein in lieu of Article 4 now contained therein, that is to say—

"4—(1) Eggs sold, or offered or consigned for sale on, or exported from premises registered in the Register of Exporters, shall be tested for quality, soundness, and cleanliness within a period of seventy-two hours prior to being so sold, offered or consigned for sale, or exported. The eggs shall be tested either by means of a testing lamp of the type described in the Third Schedule to these Regulations or by means of such other type of apparatus approved of by the Minister either generally or in any particular instance. The testing lamp or other approved apparatus shall be operated in a room or other part of the premises from which the light has been sufficiently excluded, or shall be fixed in a special type of frame-work known to the trade as a daylight tester, or fixed to any other type of frame-work or apparatus approved by the Minister. During the process of testing each egg shall be held with the large end against the beam of light from the testing lamp or other apparatus and turned completely round so as to permit the whole of the egg being examined.

(2) This Article shall not apply to a quantity of eggs less than thirty dozen which are sold, or offered, or consigned for sale."

(5) Article 5 of the Principal Regulations is hereby amended in the following respects and shall be construed and have effect accordingly, that is to say—

(a) by the insertion in paragraph (1) thereof of the word "Pullets" at the end of the class headed "Fresh Eggs," and

(b) by the deletion in paragraph (2) thereof of the sub-paragraph commencing with the word "Medium" and ending with the word "visible," and the substitution for the sub-paragraph so deleted of a new sub-paragraph as follows:—

"' Medium' shall mean eggs of reasonably uniform size and so selected that while the weight of each great hundred shall be not less than 13½ lb., no individual egg shall be included which weighs less than 13 lb. per great hundred. Eggs shall be clean, free from stain, strong and sound in shell, with air space not exceeding three-sixteenths of one inch in depth, with white of egg translucent and firm and yolk faintly visible," and

(c) by the insertion at the end of the said paragraph (2) of a new sub-paragraph as follows:—

"'Pullets' means eggs so selected that while the weight of each great hundred shall be less than 13 lb., no individual egg shall be included which weighs less than 11¼ lb. per great hundred. Eggs shall be clean, free from stain, strong and sound in shell, with air space not exceeding three-sixteenths of one inch in depth, with white of egg translucent and firm and yolk faintly visible," and

(d) by the deletion in paragraph (3) thereof of the sub-paragraph commencing with the words "Medium Cold Stored" and ending with the word "visible," and the substitution for the sub-paragraph so deleted of a new sub-paragraph as follows:—

"'Medium Cold Stored' shall mean eggs of reasonably uniform size, preserved by means of artificial refrigeration, and so selected that while the weight of each great hundred shall be not less than 13½ lb., no individual egg shall be included weighing less than 13 lb. per great hundred. Eggs shall be clean, free from stain, sound in shell, with air space not exceeding three-eighths of one inch in depth, with white of egg clear and firm, not weak and watery, and yolk moderately visible," and

(e) by the deletion in paragraph (3) thereof of the sub-paragraph commencing with the words "Medium Pickled" and ending with the word "visible," and the substitution for the sub-paragraph so deleted of a new sub-paragraph as follows:—

"'Medium Pickled' shall mean eggs of reasonably uniform size preserved by immersion in a saturated solution of lime, waterglass or other preservative and so selected that while the weight of each great hundred shall not be less than 13½ lb., no individual egg shall be included weighing less than 13 lb. per great hundred. Eggs shall be clean, free from stain, and sound in shell with air space not exceeding three-eighths of one inch in depth, with white of egg clear and firm, not weak and watery, and yolk moderately visible."

6. Sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (1) of Article 8 of the Principal Regulations is hereby amended by the insertion of the word "Pullets" after the word "Medium" and that Article shall be construed and have effect accordingly.

7. The Agricultural Produce (Eggs) (Amending) Regulations, 1932 (Statutory Rules and Orders, No. 66 of 1932), are hereby revoked.

8. These Regulations shall come into operation as from the 1st day of February, 1936.

Given under my Seal of Office, this 31st day of January, 1936.

SÉAMAS O RIAIN,

Minister for Agriculture.