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Failure is not an option at Monday’s talks between the Beef Plan Movement, other farm organisations and Meat Industry Ireland (MII), Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has said.
He told the Irish Farmers Journal at the Tullamore Show on Sunday: “We cannot contemplate failure at these talks. There’s an extensive agenda, there’s an independent chairperson and I’m hopeful that we can make progress there,” he said.
“I’d like to acknowledge that it has been a very difficult two weeks and farmers picketing isn’t where they want to be and it isn’t an easy place either for workers in factories, it wasn’t an easy place for farmers who were trying to sell cattle.”
Minister Creed also acknowledged the role of the Beef Plan Movement and the meat industry in getting to a dialogue situation, saying that it “wasn’t easy either on anybody’s behalf”.
“I’d like to acknowledge the effort that they have put in in terms of complying with the agreement that was put in place,” he said.
Recognition
When asked by the Irish Farmers Journal if he would look at recognising the Beef Plan Movement as a farm organisation and would invite them to future talks on agriculture, Minister Creed said that there has been “implicit recognition in terms of the engagement” his Department has had with the group over the last number of weeks.
SHARING OPTIONS: