9th September 2014

On September 9th, West Cork ICSA staged a protest at the ABP meat plant in Bandon on Tuesday, September 9th to highlight the ongoing beef crisis and the knock-on effects on farmers.

“Factories are manipulating the Quality Pricing System and using it as a means of penalising instead of rewarding farmers,” said ICSA West Cork chairman Dermot Kelleher. “The 30-month specification, the weight limit on bulls and the restriction on the number of movements an animal can have simply do not make sense. Farmers jump through all the hoops to produce top-quality beef which meets the requirements of the Bord Bia Quality Assured Scheme, but when they get to the factory, they end up suffering instead of benefitting.”

“On top of this, Bord Bia is using Ireland’s image of grass-fed beef as a marketing tool, and yet factory requirements are forcing farmers to finish animals on meal in order to have them ready to sell under 30 months, or under 16 months in the case of young bulls. Surely a 31-month old animal fed on grass is better than one that is under 30 months but finished on meal?”