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Organic beef processor Good Herdsman is set to triple its demand for organic beef over the coming years.
Speaking on RTÉ CountryWide, CEO of the Irish Organic Association (IOA) Gillian Westbrook said that the processor has secured further contracts to process organic beef.
It’s understood that there are markets specifically for organic Angus with processors already offering an additional 10c/kg.
The base price for organic cattle currently stands at around €4.60/kg. In comparison, the base price for commercial cattle stands at roughly €3.70/kg, with some processors still quoting €3.65/kg.
Further demand
The EU's Farm to Fork strategy has outlined plans to push the organic land area to 25% by 2030. Ireland has one of the lowest organic land areas in Europe with just over 2%.
However, Westbrook said that large-scale companies such as beef processor Slaney and dairy processor Glenisk hope to grow the organic side of their business in line with consumer demand for products.
Overall, the Department paid €8.4m to 1,494 organic farmers last year but there have been ongoing complaints of tardy organic payments and schemes not fit for organic purposes.
Farmers have insisted that the next scheme framework must be developed hand in hand with organic farmers.
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