3 OCTOBER 2016
However, ICSA president warns that approval process must result in real competition on November 1st
ICSA has given a guarded welcome to the Department decision to move to an approval process for the supply of cattle tags which potentially will lead to competition. Following a meeting with the Department, ICSA president Patrick Kent said that it was vital there would be real competition as soon as the new regime commences on November 1st. “ICSA has long favoured competition between tag suppliers in order to give farmers the best chance of value for money, top service and durable tags.”
“ICSA believes that farmers not Department officials are best placed to determine value for money and the durability of tags. Farmers have a vested interest in a number of tag manufacturers competing with each other. This is the best way to ensure ongoing effort to continuously improve the quality of the tag and also the turnaround time for delivering tags for new born calves. Competition will also incentivise companies to continuously seek efficiencies and to keep margins tight.”
“However, ICSA made it very clear that the approval process must be completed as expeditiously as possible. We do not want to see artificial delays in granting approval to quality tags and we have outlined our view that tags which are deemed good enough for the UK, Germany, France, Netherlands etc should also be deemed good enough in Ireland. ICSA will therefore be carefully monitoring the process and the decision taken can only truly be judged when we see several operators in business by November 1st.”
Mr Kent also explained that ICSA has insisted to the Department that farmers must be made aware that tag cost includes a 38 cent voluntary levy to ICBF. “We want to ensure that the tag ordering process makes this clear and that farmers have a straightforward choice in opting in or opting out of this levy.”
ENDS
