In 2019, the Irish beef industry will be defined by six letters: Brexit. Never in the lifetime of the majority of Irish beef farmers have we been faced with such a challenge as March 2019 will bring. One of the most frustrating things is, as farmers, there is little that can be done about it. 2018 has been a really tough year for Irish beef farmers, with high production costs and lower farmgate prices and many are now questioning the economics of keeping a suckler cow.

In 2019, I think all industry stakeholders will need to come together to see how suckler-bred beef can be marketed as a niche product and attract a premium.

With more and more beef coming from the dairy herd, the rollout of the new dairy beef index is a must if beef farmers are to finish dairy-bred animals profitably.

On a positive note, live exports are up along with our meat exports and I think as we move to the global stage with our meat products our quality assurance and extremely high farm standards will stand to us as we look to seek new markets and expand others. Irish beef is one of the safest, healthiest meats in the world and we shouldn’t shy away from this fact. If we are to win the battle of keeping meat in tomorrow’s consumers diets we have to be able to demonstrate best practice in animal welfare, antibiotic use and care for the environment and have the facts to prove it.

Irish beef farmers have demonstrated enormous resilience in 2018 and have shown a commitment to the sector but no one can argue with beef farmers questioning their future at current margins.