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JULY / AUGUST 2020

               Give summer 2020 your best shot with
               Consumer Choice

                     MONEY               LIFESTYLE             PRODUCT TESTS

               BACK-TO-SCHOOL COSTS   COLLECTIVE REDRESS    FRIDGE FREEZERS
               SWITCHING ENERGY PLANS HOME COMPOSTING       TUMBLE DRYERS
               MONEYLENDING RULES     FOOD SUSTAINABILITY   DIGITAL CAMERAS
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The
Consumers'
                          July / August 2020
Association of            Dear Member,
Ireland
                          This issue reflects how there are quite a number of changes                   Should these not also be reviewed in terms of what we have and,
The Council is the        coming down the line in relation to consumer protection. Food                 rather than rewriting the entire book of law, look firstly to insisting
policy-making body        and packaging is again under scrutiny; the inadequate rights and              upon action in the area of existing enforcement and dispute
of CAI. Members are       protections in the digital economy are about to change; GDPR                  resolution mechanisms by those who should? Consider this in
elected from within       penalties will be enormously increased and entirely inadequate                terms of the shambolic treatment of consumer entitlements in
the CAI's membership      legal provisions have been reviewed in deep detail; and the means             terms of Covid-related travel refunds and cancellations. Still,
at the Annual             for collective redress actions are, well, at the EU level at least, finally   four long months after losing the ability to travel, thousands of
General Meeting.          being supported with a preference that this be done through                   consumers remain waiting for refunds, vouchers and resolution of
                          independent consumer associations.                                            their entitlements under the provisions of consumer law and, for
Council                                                                                                 many, for money they paid out in 2019.
Members                   Key to provisions and protections is effective enforcement. At the
                          heart of this lies the importance of specific and detailed actions            The Consumer Omnibus Directive is long awaited and very much
Chairperson               to be taken when a breach occurs. Across the European Union,                  needed. However, is it not a clear fact that, in Ireland, we need a
Michael Kilcoyne          there are daily breaches which, because of a lack of specifics in the         compensation fund to provide for consumers whose taxes provide
Vice-Chairperson          drafted Regulations, the out-of-pocket consumer is left to rely on            only for less than adequate enforcement of the laws they depend
Raymond O'Rourke
                          Small Claims Court actions, lengthy complaint processes requiring             upon when paying for goods and services?
Hon Secretary
                          review and decision by ombudsmen, mediation and adjudication
Elaine Bolger
Hon Treasurer             through alternative or online dispute resolution platforms and
Richard Donohue           schemes.
Council Members
Steen Bruun-Nielsen
James Wims

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                                                              Consumer Choice,
                                                                                                                         Managing Editor
       We do not necessarily price or report on all                                                                      Clodagh O'Donoghue
                                                              120/121 Baggot Street Lower,
       brands or models within the class, and the
                                                              Dublin 2
       exclusion of any brand or model should not be                                                                     Researchers
       taken as a reflection on it.                                                                                      Róisín Moloney Weekes
                                                              Tel (01) 659 9430
                                                              Email cai@thecai.ie                                        Atousa Motameni
       Social Media:                                          www.thecai.ie

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Contents                                                                                www.twitter.com/The_CAI

                                                                                        www.facebook.com/
                                                                                        ConsumersAssociationIreland

20         Back-to-School Costs                                                    28   Digital Cameras

       MONEY                                     FOOD & HEALTH                           PRODUCT TESTS
6    Money News                          12 The EU’s Farm to Fork                  26 Ebook Readers
     The latest developments in             Strategy                                    Get stuck into a good ebook
     money matters, including new             Proposed changes across the EU            with a new Kobo or an up-
     moneylending rules aimed                 are aimed at improving the sus-           dated Kindle.
     at strengthening consumer                tainability of food production and
     protection.                              supply.
                                                                                   28 Digital Cameras
                                                                                        Take your best shot with a Choice
20 Back-to-School Costs                                                                 Buy digital camera.
     Consumer Choice examines            14 A Good Grilling
     the financial pressures faced            Avoid barbecue blunders with food
     by households with school-               safety advice from safefood.         34 Fridge Freezers
     going children heading into                                                        With bigger weekly shops, our
     the 2020/2021 academic year.                                                       fridge freezers are under greater
                                                                                        pressure than ever…but which
                                                                                        ones are up to the job?
22 Power Switch                                 LIFESTYLE
     Consumer Choice investi-                                                      39 Tumble Dryers
     gates consumer options in           16 Walk This Way                               Our seven Choice Buy tumble
     Ireland’s electricity and gas            Step-by-step instructions for             dryers turn in a great perfor-
     market and how to switch                 improving your walking                    mance.
     provider if you are not get-             technique.
     ting the best deal.

                                         18   Home Composting –
     COUNCIL                                  A Beginner’s Guide
                                              Consumer Choice digs into the
10   The Need for Access to                   dos and don’ts of home compost-
     Justice and Mechanism                    ing.
     for Supporting the
     Consumer
     Consumers can benefit
     significantly from a collective
     redress mechanism and the CAI
     can play a key role in this long-
     sought means of resolution.
                                                                                    34       Fridge Freezers

 2      www.thecai.ie                                                                                       July / August 2020
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News Briefs by Dermott Jewell                                                                             NEWS BRIEFS

     More Than A Game
     It was in April that Nintendo reported that as many as
                                                                        Keeping Us Up To Speed
                                                                        Just one day after outages in the UK, customers here re-
     160,000 of its users, with Nintendo network identifying ad-
                                                                        ported 4G outages across the country on the Vodafone
     dresses (NNID), had been affected by a data breach. In other       Ireland network. Customers took to social media advising
     words, the accounts had been hacked with the potential for         how they could only access slower internet speeds and it
     malicious fallout to the account holders. What has subsequent-     became clear quite quickly that it was not an isolated prob-
     ly been clarified was how that originally quoted figure was        lem. Vodafone issued advice that it was experiencing an in-
                                                                        terruption to its mobile services. Later, a spokesperson for
     off, significantly so, and the numbers affected were actually
                                                                        Vodafone advised that the outage had been resolved, but
     in excess of 300,000. What is most concerning regarding the        they gave no detail or explanation as to what was its cause.
     illegal hack is that it was not the company that uncovered the     The outage in the UK resulted in customers being unable to
     fraudulent activity but the users who discovered and reported      make or receive calls but they were still able to use text and
     that their accounts had been accessed from remote locations        mobile data.
                                                                                   In the previous month, Vodafone had advised
     across the globe. Many had money deducted from their cards
                                                                        that the Covid-19 pandemic had led to a dramatic shift in
     or PayPal accounts registered with their NNID accounts.            consumer behaviour that included a 50% increase in voice
     Nintendo launched an investigation and discovered that mon-        traffic volumes and a 50% increase in data usage on desk-
     ies illegally deducted were used to purchase Fortnite V-Bucks,     tops or fixed terminals. It has to be said that the systems
     an in-game virtual currency that the hackers could use or sell     underpinning our engagement, with few exceptions like
                                                                        these, delivered exceptionally well and consumers really
     on for profit. Nintendo advised that it would be refunding all
                                                                        did get good value for money from their packages. Con-
     affected account holders. In addition, it disabled the NNID        gratulations to all those hidden in the background keeping
     login system and replaced it with a new and more robust            the technology fit for purpose.
     two-step verification structure for security and support.

                                          ANIMAL, MINERAL AND TECHNICAL
Dublin-based start-up Drop was established in 2012 to develop smart-kitchen software. The company has just received funding of
almost €12 million to make a total of €20 million in funding since its inception. The company now employs more than 40 people
in offices in Dublin, San Francisco and Zaragoza. So, how does it work? Drop has created a platform that enables home cooks
and bakers to connect their favourite recipes with smart appliances in their kitchens. To back this up, technology has been inte-
grated into appliances made by companies that include market leaders such as Bosch, Electrolux, Kenwood and GE Appliances
and across the full spectrum of appliances from coffee machines to ovens and from blenders to fryers. Consumers connect their
smart appliances to their Drop profile, the platform will adjust the recipes to match that appliance and provide that consumer with
the correct times, temperatures and settings to follow a recipe or adapt it for a specific number of portions. It also allows users to
convert their favourite recipes into a single format and store them all in one place. Gone are the days of a shilling for the meter
and, apparently, an innate kitchen appliance!

July / August 2020
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Low Mileage: One Previous Owner (Unusual taste
   in music, father of two, likes…………..)
   Surveys carried out in the various countries        to cars hired, leased and sold. A recent
   have shown a serious lapse of attention             Which survey found that a very high number
   from consumers in removing or deleting              of owners were not deleting detail, which
   their data from devices and tablets offered         would include home address, passwords and
   free for use in hotels and resorts. By way          sensitive personal detail, from their cars prior
   of avoiding unexpected call costs or data           to sale or return. The apps that are available
   download charges on their own devices,              now facilitate remote door opening, starting
   many consumers upload their data, contacts          and tracking of a car and its location and so
   and preferences to these devices without            it is of primary importance that it is deleted
   ensuring that they delete them before               and removed to restore the car to its original
   departure. The same, very much, applies             settings.

  Hotel? Crikey!
                                                        Courtesy of our Australian colleagues at          website. In January this year – ruling on
                                                        Choice magazine there, I noted an inter-          a case taken in 2016 – the Federal Court
                                                        esting court case taken against Trivago,          found that Trivago breached the Austra-
                                                        the hotel web comparison site. This               lian Consumer Law by making misleading
                                                        service promises to find you the cheapest         claims. It was stated that “By prominently
                                                        rates available for the hotel room, making        displaying a hotel offer in ‘top position’
                                                        the consumer choice a simplistic and posi-        on its website, Trivago represented that
                                                        tive expense in terms of value for money.         the offer was either the cheapest avail-
                                                        You would think that all right. However,          able offer or had some other extra feature
                                                        as outlined in Choice, what the service           that made it the best offer when this was
                                                        really does is find you the cheapest room         not often the case”. The penalties against
                                                        among the providers that pay it the most          Trivago have yet to be declared. Good on
                                                        money for including their hotels on the           ya, Cobbers!

A (non-tech) Stinging Blow
Malaria remains to be one of the greatest         in the spray is Perlite. Perlite is mined and,   mammals. And, more importantly, studies
health risks to humans across the world.          as a raw material, it contains water trapped     and testing have shown that mosquitoes
The mosquitoes that spread the disease            by the rapid cooling of lava. The moisture       have no resistance to it. A controlled study
are proving more and more resilient and           vaporises explosively when heat is applied. It   showed that units treated with the volcanic-
resistant to the more commonly used               is most commonly used in building materials      glass spray resulted in the largest mosquito
insecticides. A team of researchers from          and in gardens as a soil additive. This new      mortality rates. Results showed mortality
North Carolina University has come up             insecticide, Imergard WP, can be applied         rates of mosquitoes alighting on Imergard
with a new spray that has shown promise in        to interior walls and ceilings as an indoor      WP-treated walls were greater than 80% up
controlling the disease. It is a spray, for use   residual spray. Key to its formulation are the   to five months after treatments, and 78% at
indoors, made of a combination of volcanic        proven findings that no additional chemicals     six months.
glass and water. The volcanic glass used          are needed, making the spray non-toxic to

  July / August 2020
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FOOD & HEALTH/News                                         by Clodagh O’Donoghue

Food &
Health
High sugar content in pre-mixed spirits and cocktails
Recent UK research on the growing category       addition, just 63 of these products (41%)         of the ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages
of pre-mixed spirits and cocktails has found     had any form of nutrition information on          studied – from zero in a number of instances,
that these beverages can contain very high       the packaging and nine out of ten products        including Tesco Triple Distilled Vodka With
levels of sugar but often provide little or      provided no information on sugar content          Lime and Lemonade, to a whopping 59g or
no information on the packaging to alert         – so, for 91% of these beverages, consumers       15 teaspoons of sugar, the equivalent of four
consumers. Known in the trade as ‘ready-to-      were left completely unaware of the large         iced doughnuts, in a large 700ml bottle of
drink’ alcoholic beverages, these products       amounts of sugar they were drinking. These        Blue WKD. This finding clearly demonstrates
comprise of an alcoholic drink and a mixer       products can sidestep EU regulations on           that it is possible to make these drinks with
sold pre-mixed in either a can or a bottle.      mandatory lists of ingredients and nutritional    less sugar.
Feeding into the ‘grab-and-go’ culture, these    information on packaging because of their         		          This research is important given
beverages focus on convenience and market        alcoholic content.                                the role that excessive sugar consumption
statistics show that sales of these products     		          The study further found               plays in contributing to overweight and
are growing faster than wine, beer, or spirits   discrepancies with portion sizes, given           obesity levels and related health conditions,
sold for consumption outside licensed            that volume-per-can/bottle ranged from            such as type 2 diabetes, various cancers and
premises. Given the increasing popularity        200ml to 700ml, with some manufacturers           tooth decay. Action on Sugar concludes its
of these pre-mixed drinks, UK organisation       even suggesting that one small 250ml              study with recommendations for government
Action on Sugar conducted a study of 202         can would contain two portions. Such a            and drinks manufacturers as well as for
ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages and, using    lack of consistency creates confusion and         consumers, who are urged to look for
independent laboratory analysis, found that      incorrect assumptions of suitable portions        nutrition labelling and compare products
in some cases there was up to nine teaspoons     sizes for consumers. Moreover, the study          to choose better alternatives or to seek out
or 36g of sugar in a single 250ml can. In        found huge variation in the sugar content         low-calorie and low-alcohol options.

Effects of air pollution on asthma rates in the over-50s
Although concerns in relation to asthma          identified in two ways – participants were        can contribute to the risk of developing
often centre around children, the over-50        asked if they had been given a diagnosis of       asthma and the severity of the condition for
age group was a focus of a recent study          asthma and the study additionally checked         those who suffer from it. To date, research
into the effect of air pollution on asthma       if the individuals were using any asthma          has focused on the risk to children, with less
rates. Conducted by the Economic                 medications, such as inhalers. Overall, 9%        evidence of possible risks to older adults.
and Social Research Institute (ESRI), the        of the participants in the 50-plus age group      Even though levels of air pollution are
research analysed data from the Irish            reported an asthma diagnosis and 6.9%             relatively low in Ireland compared to many
Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) on          reported using relevant medications. Having       other countries and rarely exceed standard
8,162 adults over 50 years old in Ireland and    controlled for personal characteristics that      regulatory limits, the new ERSI study found
combined information on these individuals’       might affect the likelihood of having asthma,     significant links between NO2 exposure
socioeconomic background and health              such as age, sex, history of smoking and          and higher asthma rates among over-50s
conditions with estimates of annual average      education level, the study found that living in   in Ireland. Further research is needed to
nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations            an area with higher NO2 concentrations was        demonstrate if air pollution causes asthma
around their home addresses. NO2 is one          linked to an increased probability of asthma.     or makes it more severe for older groups but
of a number of pollutants emitted by motor       		          Asthma affects more than 300          the current findings suggest that this may be
vehicles and so is often used as an indicator    million people globally, making it the world’s    the case.
of transport-related air pollution generally.    most chronic respiratory condition, and
		         Respondents with asthma were          there is growing evidence that air pollution

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MONEY NEWS

Money News                                                                                           Money News by Clodagh O’Donoghue

                                                                   “The high-cost warning requirement for
New Moneylending                                                   advertisements for moneylending loans
Rules To Strengthen                                                with an APR of over 23% will come into
Consumer Protection                                                effect on 1st September 2020.”

In June, the Central Bank of Ireland             and a number of new requirements will            an unlicensed moneylender. The Central
announced a number of new regulations            be put in place for people working in the        Bank provides a register of licensed
for moneylenders aimed at providing              sector in order to enhance professional          moneylenders on its website at http://
better protection for consumers and              standards. If a loan is required for             registers.centralbank.ie/. The issue of
enhancing professional standards in the          basic needs, such as accommodation or            exorbitant interest rates charged by
moneylending sector. Consumers of                electricity bills, then the moneylender must     moneylending services, which can be as
licensed moneylending services must              tell the consumer that a moneylending            high as 287% when collection charges are
be made aware of the high-cost nature            loan may not be in their best interest and       included, has been raised by the Society
of the loans on offer and so, under the          contact information for the Money Advice         of St Vincent De Paul and other groups
new measures, prominent warnings must            and Budgeting Service (MABS) must be             seeking better protection for consumers
feature on all advertisements for loans with     provided.                                        who are struggling financially. The Central
an APR of more than 23% and consumers            		         These regulations are set to          Bank points out that it has no statutory
must be prompted to consider lower-cost          take effect on 1st January 2021 but,             power to impose a market-wide cap on
alternatives.                                    in recognition of the serious financial          interest rates and that this is a question
		        Other new rules introduced by          difficulties that may be experienced by          for the Oireachtas as it would require a
the Central Bank will have the effect of         people as a result of the Covid-19 health        legislative amendment.
restricting moneylenders’ contact with           emergency, the high-cost warning
consumers and limiting the promotion             requirement for advertisements for
of loans to consumers, giving greater            moneylending loans with an APR of over
control to consumers to decide when they         23% will come into effect on 1st September
want to be contacted by a moneylender.           2020.
Importantly, moneylenders will not be            		         Given the high interest rates
allowed to make an unsolicited offer to          often charged on moneylending loans,
apply for credit to consumers who have           the Central Bank’s Director of Consumer
recently fully repaid or are nearing full        Protection Gráinne McEvoy urges
repayment of a moneylending loan.                consumers to consider other options
Moneylenders will have to ensure that their      before using the services of licensed
marketing strategy is fair and reasonable        moneylenders and to never borrow from

Covid-19 Payment Scam Warning
The Department of Employment Affairs             whereupon they are asked to enter their          bank account information from customers
and Social Protection has been warning           bank account details. This link has nothing      as part of a written application. Consumers
the public not to disclose bank or other         whatever to do with the Department of            need to be aware of this fraudulent activity
financial details in response to text messages   Employment Affairs and Social Protection,        and ensure that they keep their bank and
purporting to relate to the Covid-19 payment.    which urges people not to click on the link or   other financial account information safe and
A new scam has emerged in which members          reply to the text. The Department states that    private. If you think you may have provided
of the public receive a message on their         it will never request bank account or other      personal information in response to one
mobile phone from an unknown number              financial institution account details by phone   of these scam text messages, you should
telling them that they are entitled to the       or on social media and nor does it ever seek     contact your bank immediately.
Covid-19 payment and inviting them to click      to clarify or check this information over
on the ‘socialwelfareireland’ link provided,     the phone. The Department only accepts

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Fall In Energy Supplier Switching Rates
In April, energy supplier switching rates         switches in April 2020 reached the lowest     supplier every year for the last four years
fell to their lowest point in seven years,        level recorded since December 2013, when      could have saved €704 on gas, €1,097 on
according to the Commission for Regulation        there were 16,204 electricity switches        electricity or €1,696 on their dual fuel costs.
of Utilities (CRU) Customer Switching             and 6,308 gas switches. It is believed that   		         The CRU strongly recommends
Report for the Electricity and Gas Retail         the significant year-on-year reduction in     that customers review their energy bills
Markets. During the month, there were             switching numbers is at least partially       and look at offers from other suppliers
17,843 switches in electricity, down from         related to the onset of the Covid-19 public   that may be cheaper using accredited
23,882 switches in April 2019 – a decline         health emergency in Ireland in March, with    price comparison websites. It stresses
of 25%. Moreover, April 2020 saw 6,141            consumers understandably not focused          that switching is free of charge and easy
switches in gas providers, compared with          on some aspects of their household bills.     to do and that the savings gained may
9,921 switches made in April 2019 – a drop        However, there are substantial savings        be significant. On page 22 of this issue,
of 38%. These decreases in switching              to be made on energy bills, with the CRU      Consumer Choice examines what is on offer
levels follow similar drops in March. In          estimating that customers who switched        in the Irish energy market and how to switch
fact, the number of electricity and gas           supplier or renegotiated with their current   suppliers where a better deal is available.

The ‘It Makes Sense’ Loan
Consumers in receipt of social         those receiving welfare payments
welfare payments may feel they         in cash or through a standing order/
have little option when looking        direct debit for those receiving
for a loan other than to turn to a     welfare payments into an account.
moneylender, but their local credit    The Household Budget Scheme
union may be able to provide a far-    spreads the cost of household bills
preferable alternative in the form     by enabling you to pay regular
of an ‘It Makes Sense’ loan. The It    amounts towards your bills directly
Makes Sense scheme is an initiative    from your weekly social welfare
on offer at participating credit       payments. Some credit unions
unions that provides loans of small    will only consider loans that are
amounts of money at low interest       repayable through this scheme.
rates, with the aim of reducing        		          Every application will be
borrowers’ dependence on high-         considered on its own merits and
cost loans from moneylenders.          social welfare recipients will not
		          It Makes Sense loans are   automatically be entitled to a loan.
available to anyone aged over 18       Potential borrowers will need to
years who receives a social welfare    show a capacity and a willingness
payment who may not be able to         to make the repayments and the
secure a loan or credit from any       local credit union can decide
other source. Loan amounts range       whether or not to grant a loan.
from between €100 to €2,000, with      Consumers who are not already
a maximum interest rate of 12% or      members of their local credit union
12.68% APR. These loans must be        can be signed up very quickly,
repaid within a maximum period         once they can show that they live
of two years and can be used for       or work in the area, and they can
any purpose, including repaying an     then be immediately considered for
outstanding debt on a high-interest    an It Makes Sense loan. For more
loan.                                  information on how to apply and a
		          Borrowers must agree       list of participating credit unions, go
to pay the loan either through the     to https://itmakessenseloan.ie/.
Household Budget Scheme for

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                                                                                                                                    August2020
                                                                                                                                           2020
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Product/Tech News

   Food waste turned into clean energy
   In June, Tesco Ireland announced plans to use renewable gas                     sent for processing to Green Generation’s €2.5-million anaerobic-
   generated from food surplus to power six of its stores across the               digestion plant in Nurney, Co. Kildare, where it will be converted into
   country. Tesco claims that its initiative is a first among Irish retailers      renewable gas. This will then be fed into the gas network at a facility
   and that it will help to reduce the company’s carbon emissions by               in nearby Cush, from which Tesco will buy the renewable gas outputs
   1,200 tonnes a year. Renewable gas, sometimes called biomethane,                via energy supplier Naturgy. Thus, Tesco will be both supplying
   is a clean, carbon-neutral fuel that is produced using a process                waste for conversion into renewable gas and using the clean energy
   known as anaerobic digestion that breaks down food waste and other              produced.
   waste products. It offers a promising alternative to natural gas and            		         The initiative is facilitated by Gas Networks Ireland, which
   its potential as a renewable fuel for transport, heat and electricity, as       invested €1.7 million in the dedicated renewable gas entry point
   part of a move to a low-carbon economy, is well recognised.                     in Cush and is planning to develop larger gas entry points across
   		         Much of Tesco Ireland’s food surplus is donated to its charity       Ireland in the coming year as part of a project to fully decarbonise the
   partner, FoodCloud, for redistribution and now leftover food will be            country’s gas network by 2050.

   Coffee capsule recycler
A new device could offer a simple way of recycling coffee pods at home. Our independent product tests have
shown that coffee capsule machines consistently deliver a convenient and flavoursome caffeine hit but the
environmental impact of pods may weigh on our collective conscience. Recycling pods is tricky due to the
difficulty of separating the plastic and aluminium components from the coffee grounds inside – although this is
perfectly possible, it is a time-consuming and fiddly exercise. Recycling programmes are on offer by Nespresso
and other manufacturers but instead of having to store capsules to have them collected or deliver them to
specific locations, it would be preferable to be able to dismantle these small items at home and dispose of all
components appropriately.
		          It is with this in mind that UK manufacturer Dualit has developed the EcoPress, a new gadget that
turns used Nespresso or Nespresso-compatible pods inside out so that they can be easily rinsed out and then
popped into your recycling bin. Our colleagues at Which have tried this device out and found that it is indeed very
simple to use, involving little more than popping the used capsule inside, replacing the lid and pushing down. You
may need two hands and a degree of pressure will have to be applied, but testers found it reasonably easy to do
overall. They did note, however, that once turned inside out, the capsules have sharp, jagged edges so users will
need to be careful when rinsing them out. The container below the EcoPress can collect coffee grounds from ten
pods before it will need to be emptied, and these can be put into your brown bin or added to a compost heap. The
EcoPress can be washed either by hand or on the top rack of the dishwasher. If this sounds like an appealing way
to assuage any environmental guilt you may have about using coffee capsules, the Dualit EcoPress is available
online for £12.50 (€14 approx.).

   The products featured on these pages have not been tested by the Consumers’
                                                                                                               Product News by Clodagh O'Donoghue
   Association of Ireland and their inclusion here is not, in any way, an endorsement of them.

    8        www.thecai.ie                                                                                                             July / August 2020

 European app to the rescue
 Euro NCAP has further contributed to the          of an accident. Time is critical immediately    gathering together crucial details on how
 area of car safety by launching its Euro          following a traumatic injury and every          to extricate occupants swiftly and safely
 Rescue app, a new and vital source of             second counts in the ‘golden hour’ during       and ensuring that no time is lost in finding
 information for emergency first responders        which there is the highest likelihood that      the correct rescue sheet. The information
 attending the scene of an accident. Since         prompt treatment will prevent death.            provided on the app includes the location of
 1997, Euro NCAP – the European New Car            Developed by Euro NCAP in collaboration         various components, such as airbags, and
 Assessment Programme – has worked                 with the International Association of Fire      high-voltage electrical cables and batteries,
 to drive innovation in vehicle safety and         and Rescue Services, the Euro Rescue app        all of which could pose a danger to trapped
 the testing organisation is focused on not        is aimed at saving first responders vital       occupants and to the rescuers themselves.
 only preventing crashes and minimising            seconds by providing them with quick and        The app can be downloaded for free onto
 injury in the event of a collision but also on    straightforward information regarding the       both Android and iOS devices and it can be
 enhancing post-crash safety.                      construction of the vehicle to help safely      used online and offline, so that rescuers can
 		         As vehicles become increasingly        remove occupants from the wreck.                access the information even when network
 advanced and complex with alternative             		         The key benefit of the app is that   coverage is poor or non-existent. The app
 fuel systems incorporated, it has become          it centralises all the information provided     is currently available in English, French,
 crucial that emergency responders know            by vehicle manufacturers in their rescue        German and Spanish and will be available in
 what they can and cannot do at the scene          sheets and emergency response guides,           all European languages from 2023.

  Bouncing baby
  Sleep-deprived new parents may be          will play, with parents able to choose
  tempted to check out Cradlewise, a         from a number of gentle music options
  smart cot system that claims it will       via an accompanying app that can be
  automatically rock your baby back          downloaded onto an Apple or Android
  to sleep if they wake up during the        device. This app can be used to send
  night. The crib acts as a real-time baby   alerts to the parent when the baby is
  monitor, using its built-in night-vision   waking or record sleep analytics, such
  camera and microphone to track your        as hours slept. In addition, the app can
  baby’s sleep patterns, with artificial     act just like a regular baby monitor,
  intelligence (AI) software helping to      allowing parents to watch and listen
  develop, over time, a sleep profile for    to their baby in real time. Parents can
  your baby that includes typical bedtime    manually control the bed-bouncing
  and wake-up times.                         action either using the app or by
  		           If the baby shows signs of    pushing down on the bed to start it
  waking prematurely, such as opening        bouncing and holding it down for five
  their eyes or moving around more, then     seconds to stop it. The key aim of
  Cradlewise will automatically start to     Cradlewise is to soothe babies before
  gently bounce its bed up and down,         they start to cry as, once the crying
  mimicking the way a parent might rock      actually starts, getting an infant back
  a baby in their arms to soothe them.       to sleep is a much greater challenge.
  Simultaneously, the cradle produces        Priced at $999 (€885 approx.), this
  white noise from a built-in speaker,       smart cradle can be used from birth as a
  which ceases along with the bouncing       bassinet and then, as the baby grows, it
  once the AI system detects that the        can be converted into a cot by lowering
  baby has gone back to sleep. At this       the bed so that it becomes suitable for
  point some light instrumental music        toddlers up to 24 months.

    9      www.thecai.ie                                                                                                        July / August 2020
Give summer 2020 your best shot with Consumer Choice
Council/Collective redress

    The Need for Access to Justice and
  Mechanism for Supporting the Consumer

Collective Redress                              		       Our focus has been outlined on            b) It would enhance the options open to
In November 2009, the Consumers’                every occasion on what, in our opinion, are        consumers whose rights have been infringed.
Association of Ireland (CAI) made a             the advantages of group or collective actions      Consumers in Ireland can pursue individual
submission to the then Government calling       for consumers as well as business and the          claims through the courts but this can be
for the introduction of a collective redress    economy.                                           very costly and time consuming. Where the
mechanism for consumers in Ireland. It is                                                          potential compensation is under €2,000, they
important to mention that this was the latest   a) It would provide a cost-effective and           can make a claim through the Small Claims
call by the Association in an engagement that   efficient legal mechanism for large numbers        Court. In some sectors, consumers can
we commenced in the 1990s. This has long        of consumers or those acting on their behalf       pursue their claim through alternative dispute
been established in a number of Member          whose rights have been infringed or who            resolution procedures. And, of course,
States and has proven to be of enormous         have been the subject of unfair commercial         they can make a complaint to a number of
power in resolving disputes, common to many     practices to seek redress when individual          ombudsmen and/or regulators. However,
consumers, caused by a single, and often        action through the courts would be costly          not all sectors are covered and the power of
dominant, provider in the marketplace.          and time consuming. While consumers have           ombudsmen/regulators can be limited.
		          In 2018, following years of         the right to pursue a claim on an individual
engagement at European Commission level,        basis, the high cost of legal, court and expert    c) The harmed consumers would benefit. In
the issue began to receive the attention it     fees they would incur is likely to outweigh any    many cases in Ireland where companies or
deserved and the CAI, together with all BEUC    compensation they would receive. Examples          business are found to have breached the law
member associations, renewed our lobbying       could include claims taken by large numbers        and acted inappropriately, fines and penalties
at national level. Here in Ireland, we met      of consumers who have been overcharged             are imposed by the courts or regulators.
with representatives at the Department of       by telecommunications companies, those             However, the consumers who have been
Justice and Equality, we engaged directly       suffering from food poisoning as the result        harmed are not compensated for loss. In
with Minister Flanagan, we reviewed and         of actions by a food company, concert-goers        Portugal, a telecommunications company
revised our outline submission document         claiming sectors of the economy are colluding      was found to have overcharged customers
and submitted it to the Department of Justice   to keep prices high, or airlines imposing unfair   over a number of years – in total, two million
and Equality and the Department of Business,    charges and fees.                                  customers were affected. As the result of
Enterprise and Innovation.                                                                         a group action case taken, the company in

          www.thecai.ie                                                                                                       July / August 2020
July / August 2020                                                                                                         www.thecai.ie      10
question agreed to offer compensation to          f) Group actions would act as a deterrent         representative actions, each Member State
those who could produce bills and 70,000          against breaches of consumer law and              will need to designate “qualified entities”. EU
came forward and received compensation.           unfair commercial practices. In certain           countries have to ensure that, in particular,
However, the vast majority of consumers           circumstances, a business or trader may           consumer associations can get a status of a
could not produce bills and the company           be tempted to act unfairly (e.g. overcharge)      qualified entity (Article 4).
was also required to offer free calls to all      in the knowledge that even if a number of         		          The lists of the qualified entities
consumers over a number of weekends as            affected consumers individually complain and      will be communicated to the European
compensation for the overcharging.                secured compensation, the business may still      Commission and made public both at national
                                                  gain from the unfair practice. However, if the    and EU levels. The courts or administrative
d) Legal action should always be a last           business or trader considered that they might     authorities shall accept this list as proof of
resort and the CAI would always acknowledge       be subject to a group action from all or most     the legal standing of the qualified entity to
the benefit of affordable mediation and           of the affected consumers, they would be less     bring a cross-border representative action.
arbitration procedures to settle consumer         likely to engage in the unfair practice.          Member States will be obliged to ensure that
complaints. However, evidence from other                                                            procedural costs do not prevent qualified
jurisdictions suggests that unless these          g) If businesses act unfairly and make            entities from seeking injunctions or redress
are backed up by effective legal redress          unjust and illegal profits, they are not only     measures (Article 15). As examples, Member
they are not taken seriously by traders and       infringing the rights of consumers, they are      States may provide public funding, including
businesses. If a trader believes there is no or   gaining an unfair commercial advantage over       the structural support for the qualified
little likelihood that a consumer can or will     competitors who are abiding by the law. If        entities, the limitation of applicable court or
take them to court, then they can ignore these    these actions go unchecked, they distort the      administrative fees, or access to legal aid.
procedures. The lack of collective redress        market, undermine consumer confidence and
procedures has been identified as one of the      impede fair competition.                          What next?
institutional barriers preventing access to the                                                     Member States will have 24 months to
courts.                                                                                             transpose the Directive. We will now seek
                                                                                                    engagement to begin discussion with the
e) Group actions and collective redress                                                             relevant Department officials for update
is about more than seeking restitution and                                                          on the planned means of progression and
compensation – it is about enforcement                                                              the role that the Consumers’ Association
and creating a culture of compliance with                                                           of Ireland will play in this long-awaited and
consumer rights. In our view, it would                                                              long-sought means of resolution and access
complement and enhance the existing                                                                 to justice for the Irish consumer.
consumer protection infrastructure and act
as a form of regulation driven by consumers
themselves. Regulation is too important to be
left to public regulators. However, for legal,
financial and regulatory reasons, regulators
are not always in a position or appear                                                              Dermott Jewell
reluctant to pursue actions against those                                                           July 2020
who harm consumers. We should seek to             Progress at long last?
develop a regulatory system that empowers         In recent weeks, we have direction from the
consumers to hold traders, businesses and         European Commission, which, potentially,
companies to account alongside regulators         brings cause for celebration. On June 23rd,
through court action if necessary.                approval was reached for a law that would
                                                  allow all citizens in the European Union to
                                                  go to court as a group if they have suffered
                                                  the same damage. In terms of scope, the
                                                  Directive will apply to representative actions
                                                  brought against infringements by traders of
                                                  provisions of EU law, and also as transposed
                                                  into national law, that harm or may harm the
                                                  collective interests of consumers. It has broad
                                                  coverage that includes general consumer
                                                  law, product liability, passenger rights, data
                                                  protection and e-privacy, financial services,
                                                  pharmaceuticals and medical devices.

                                                  Legal standing for the CAI
                                                  The Directive obliges all Member States to
                                                  have representative action mechanisms,
                                                  which allows qualified entities to bring
                                                  representative actions for the purpose of
                                                  both injunction and redress measures. For
                                                  the CAI, the key required enactment provision
                                                  is that, to have a legal standing to bring

          www.thecai.ie                                                                                                         July / August 2020
July / August 2020                                                                                                           www.thecai.ie      11
FOOD & HEALTH / Food sustainability

The EU’s
Farm to Fork Strategy
The CAI’s Raymond             Consumer Choice readers will have heard
                              much in the past months about the
                                                                                    In terms of food waste, the
                                                                           EU calls on countries to reduce food
O’Rourke outlines             EU’s Green Deal, a programme aimed at
                              making all EU actions more sustainable
                                                                           waste at each stage of the food supply
                                                                           chain, establish food waste prevention
proposed changes              in line with the UN Sustainability           programmes as part of their annual

aimed at improving            Goals. Throughout 2020, the European
                              Commission will be publishing sectoral
                                                                           general waste prevention programmes
                                                                           and encourage food donation. With the
the sustainability of         strategies with proposed measures to         data provided by Member States’ waste
                              help achieve that goal. In May 2020, the     prevention programmes, the EU in 2022
food production and           Commission published its Farm to Fork        will propose legally binding targets to
supply.                       Strategy, which aligns with the Green
                              Deal targets by advocating a fundamental
                                                                           reduce food waste across the EU.
                                                                                    On food packaging, the
                              change in the way agriculture operates       Commission will revise the food contact
                              and how food is produced for, and            materials legislation to support the use
                              provided to, EU consumers.                   of innovative and sustainable packaging
                                         In relation to agriculture, the   solutions using environmentally-friendly,
                              Strategy sets concrete targets to be         re-usable and recyclable materials
                              reached by 2030, which include a 50%         contributing to food waste reduction.
                              cut in the use of pesticides, a 20% cut in            Relating specifically to the
                              the use of fertilisers, a 50% reduction in   consumer and their position in the food
                              sales of antimicrobials used for farmed      supply chain, the EU foresees a number of
                              animals and aquaculture, and a target to     proposals that would impact on existing
                              increase the size of the EU’s agricultural   mandatory food labelling requirements in
                              land dedicated to organic farming to 25%.    the EU.

12    www.thecai.ie                                                                                  July / August 2020
Sustainable food labelling                    Date marking                                  decide on the format of front-of-pack
framework                                     Misuse and misunderstanding of date           nutrition label they would use on their
Consumers are more and more seeking           marking leads to food waste (‘use by’ date    products. With different Member States
sustainable food options but a BEUC           is used on highly perishable foods and        supporting different schemes, sadly
survey (June 2020) found that the lack of     ‘best before’ date is used on other foods).   the Commission seems once again to be
information meant that they find it hard      A study carried out by the Commission         leaving the issue of critical nutritional
to make choices between different foods       in 2018 estimated that up to 10% of food      information on food labels to be agreed
as to their sustainability credentials. The   waste generated annually in the EU is         in contravention of public health
Strategy proposes a new overarching           linked to date marking. The Commission        recommendations. The danger is that,
EU law establishing rules for all actors      therefore will revise EU rules on date        once again, food companies will be able
along the food chain in order to establish    marking to take account of this consumer      to continue to ‘mask’ foods high in fats,
sustainable food systems. At the              research.                                     sugars and salt to the detriment of the
consumer level, the Commission will                                                         health of European consumers.
examine ways to harmonise voluntary           Mandatory front-of-pack nutrition                       In conclusion, the Consumers’
green claims and to create a sustainable      labelling                                     Association of Ireland (CAI) supports the
labelling framework that covers, in           Current food consumption patterns are         proposals in the Farm to Fork Strategy on
synergy with other relevant initiatives,      unsustainable from both health and            food waste, food packaging, sustainable
the nutritional and environmental             environmental points of view. While in        food labelling, animal welfare labelling
credentials of food products.                 the EU, average intakes of energy, red        and date marking. On the other hand,
                                              meat, sugars, salt and fats continue to       the CAI has major concerns over the
                                              exceed public health recommendations,         Commission’s proposals on mandatory
                                              consumption of whole-grain cereals,           front-of-pack nutritional labelling – we
                                              fruit and vegetables, legumes and nuts is     believe they may not come to pass and
                                              insufficient.                                 we will be left with the present situation
                                                          In order therefore to assist      where the nutritional information on
                                              consumers to make informed and healthy        front-of-pack labels is very confusing for
                                              food choices, the Commission suggests         consumers. The CAI will make its views
                                              introducing harmonised mandatory              known to the Commission in the coming
                                              front-of-pack nutrition labelling.            months at the proposed stakeholder
                                                          The Commission published a        public consultation on mandatory front-
                                              report on front-of-pack labelling along       of-pack nutritional information.
                                              with the Strategy – the report noted
                                              that front-of-pack nutritional labelling
                                              has the potential to help consumers
                                              make healthy food choices and that
                                              harmonised mandatory front-of-pack
                                              nutrition labelling at the EU-level could     Raymond O’Rourke
                                              help inform these decisions. The French       Consumers’ Association of Ireland
                                              NutriScore labelling scheme is supported      July 2020
Animal welfare labelling                      by our colleagues in BEUC as the scheme
Better animal welfare improves animal         that should be chosen. On the other
health and food quality, reduces the need     hand, Sweden and Denmark use a front-
for medication and can help preserve          of-pack Keyhole nutritional logo. We here
biodiversity. The Farm to Fork Strategy       in Ireland are in a dilemma as some food
proposes to revise the existing EU animal     products utilise the front-of-pack ‘traffic
welfare legislation, including that on        lights’ scheme established in the UK,
animal transport and the slaughter            whilst the majority choose a Guideline
of animals. Most importantly for              Daily Allowance (GDA) front-of-pack
consumers, the Strategy notes that the        scheme devised by industry in opposition
Commission will consider mandatory            to the ‘traffic lights’ scheme.
rules on animal welfare labelling.                        The Commission notes at
Voluntary animal welfare labelling exists     this stage that they would not be
at present in some Member States – e.g.       recommending any specific scheme but
Germany – and there are a plethora            will first launch an impact assessment
of animal welfare voluntary schemes           on the different options and solicit input
and logos used on food labelling. New         from stakeholders through a public
EU rules would certainly offer clarity        consultation. Alas, this sounds like
to consumers on this important issue          the same arguments utilised against
when purchasing food, as the voluntary        the ‘traffic lights’ scheme when it was
schemes and logos vary considerably           first introduced many years ago. The
in relation to animal welfare standards,      Commission failed to agree on a specific
which is confusing for consumers.             mandatory front-of-pack nutrition label
                                              but instead left it to food businesses to

        www.thecai.ie                                                                                                  July / August 2020
  13
FOOD & HEALTH / Food safety

                                                           A Good Grilling…
       The basics of barbecue food safety
Keep a cool head as you stand over the hot coals
                                                                                                    REPORT by Clodagh O'Donodghue
with food safety staying top of mind.
With our travel options limited this           be thoroughly washed before starting         food involves some unique challenges,
summer, many of us will be holidaying at       any food preparations and frequently         particularly in terms of controlling the
home and, when weather permits, this           throughout the process, especially           heat and avoiding ending up with burnt
could involve breaking out the barbecue        after working with raw meat, poultry or      offerings that are still raw on the inside.
to enjoy some alfresco feasting in the         fish. Meat and chicken are often key         It is vital that poultry, pork and minced or
garden. Food always seems to taste             components of barbecues and need to be       skewered meats are cooked thoroughly
better outdoors and temperatures only          handled correctly to avoid endangering       until they are piping hot throughout. With
have to rise a little to tempt us outside      your guests. If you are using chicken in     steaks, harmful bacteria live only on the
for mealtimes. It may be fun to take a         your barbecue, do not be tempted to wash     surface and are destroyed by searing
break from routine by eating out in the        it first as this can spread food-poisoning   at a high heat, so you can serve them
open but food safety is a serious business     bacteria around your kitchen, spraying it    pink on the inside according to taste. In
and it is important not to relax all the key   onto surfaces, worktops, chopping boards,    contrast, because burgers are made up
hygiene and safe cooking practices that        utensils, clean dishes or food that might    of minced meat, the bacteria are present
you follow when in your own kitchen. To        be in the vicinity. Once chicken and meat    on the inside as well as the outside, and
avoid your barbecue ending in tears due to     are cooked properly, all harmful bacteria    so undercooked burgers could make you
a nasty bout of food poisoning, all-island     are destroyed, so washing is not necessary   seriously ill – this means that they must be
organisation safefood offers some helpful      and will likely do more harm than good. If   cooked to well done at all times.
advice.                                        you are marinating meat or poultry, it is    		           Finally, the potential for cross
                                               very important that the marinade is not      contamination must remain top of mind, so
Meaty matters                                  then poured over vegetables or cooked        make sure that raw meat and poultry and
We all now have a heightened awareness         meat as it will contain raw meat bacteria    their juices are kept well away from cooked
of hand hygiene and this needs to remain       – it can only be used as a sauce if it is    items and ready-to-eat food, and separate
a focus as we handle raw meat and              brought to a rolling boil before serving.    utensils and dishes should be used to avoid
prepare food for others. Hands need to         		          Using a barbecue to cook         the spread of harmful bacteria.

  14    www.thecai.ie                                                                                                   July / August 2020
Seven tips for a safe barbecue
 Safe barbecuing involves taking extra care
 with meat and poultry along with some
 other food-safety practices to ensure that
 everyone can enjoy their meal without
 suffering any unpleasant food-related
 illness afterwards. Seven tips from safefood
 for best-practice barbecuing are provided
 below.

 1. Keep perishable foods like salads,
 coleslaw and quiche in your fridge until
 you are about to serve them as germs can
 multiply quickly once temperatures rise.

 2. Burgers, sausages and kebabs, pork and
 poultry must be cooked all the way through
 - but steaks can be served 'rare' as harmful
 bacteria are on the outside only (and not in
 the centre).

 3. If you like to marinate your meat, make
 sure any marinade used on raw meat is not
 then used as a sauce to coat vegetables
 or cooked meat as it will contain raw meat
 bacteria.

 4. If you choose to barbecue any frozen food, it must first be completely thawed on the bottom shelf of your fridge before
 you cook it.

                                                                    5. When handling raw meat and poultry, wash your hands
                                                                    thoroughly and frequently, most importantly before going
                                                                    on to prepare salads and other ready-to-eat foods.

                                                                    6. Once your meat is cooked thoroughly, make sure to keep
                                                                    cooked meat separate from raw meat and to use separate
                                                                    chopping boards, cooking utensils and plates.

                                                                    7. If there are leftovers from your barbecue, allow the food
                                                                    to cool before refrigerating, but make sure to refrigerate
                                                                    food within two hours of cooking. Always remember with
                                                                    leftovers – if in doubt, throw them out.

In general, warmer weather and the opportunity to eat outside brings some additional food safety considerations into play. Getting out
of the kitchen means getting into some extra hygiene habits. So, whether you are hosting a barbecue in the garden or packing a family
picnic to make the most of the great outdoors, a wealth of information and advice is provided on safefood.eu, where you will also find a
range of tasty and healthy barbecue recipes plus ideas for salads, smoothies and more.

 15     www.thecai.ie                                                                                                    July / August 2020
Lifestyle/Walking benefits and techniques

                                   Walk This Way
Consumer Choice explores some surprising benefits of walking and
provides step-by-step instructions for improving your walking technique.

                                                 to fit into a daily routine and requires no     walkers did get sick, it was for a shorter time
      REPORT by Clodagh O'Donoghue               special equipment apart from a sturdy           and their symptoms were less severe.
                                                 pair of shoes. Walking helps with weight
You will likely have heard of research in        loss as it burns calories and can reduce        Curbing sugar cravings
recent years that indicates that sitting may     body fat. It also lowers blood pressure and     Not only does walking contribute to weight
be more harmful than smoking but, on the         blood sugar levels and improves circulation,    loss, but it can also tame a sweet tooth,
plus side, many detrimental effects of long      strengthening the heart and warding off         encouraging better food choices. Two
hours on the couch or at the computer can        heart disease. But beyond these well-           studies from the University of Exeter found
be offset by the simple exercise of walking.     recognised benefits, studies in recent years    that a 15-minute walk can curb cravings for
Few forms of exercise are as accessible,         have indicated some other, perhaps more         chocolate and other sugary snacks and can
affordable and beneficial, given that regular    surprising, payoffs.                            even reduce the amount of chocolate eaten
walking can help prevent everything from                                                         in stressful situations.
heart disease and type 2 diabetes to             Reducing joint pain
depression and memory problems. Going            Walking can help protect the joints,            Improving mental health and
for a walk has taken on new significance in      including the knees and hips, because           creativity
recent months as it has been one of the few      it helps to lubricate and strengthen the        Studies have demonstrated that walking
activities consistently available to us as the   muscles that support them. Several studies      can improve your mental health, reducing
country shut down and we all stayed close to     have found that walking can reduce pain for     anxiety, depression, and a negative
home. If you have got into the habit of going    those living with arthritis and that walking    mood, while boosting self-esteem, social
for a daily walk, now might be the time to       five to six miles a week may help to prevent    interaction and cognitive function. As well
improve your technique to reap even greater      arthritis from developing in the first place.   as clearing your head, walking can help
rewards. And if the pleasures of walking                                                         you think more creatively. Researchers at
have so far passed you by, there is no time      Boosting the immune function                    Stanford University conducted a number of
like the present to get off the sofa and get     It appears that walking can help safeguard      experiments that compared people trying
into your stride.                                you during cold and flu season. A study         to come up with new ideas while they were
                                                 involving more than 1,000 participants found    walking or sitting and found that, across the
Health benefits                                  that those who walked at least 20 minutes a     board, creativity levels were consistently
As we all know, any physical activity is         day at least five days a week had 43% fewer     and significantly higher for those walking
beneficial for your health and walking is        sick days than those who exercised once         compared with those sitting. The study
particularly appealing as it is free, easy       a week or less. What’s more, if the regular     found that although walking in the open

16      www.thecai.ie                                                                                                         July / August 2020
You can also read