Bord Bia’s proposed application for protected geographical indication (PGI) status for Irish grass-fed beef will give factories more control over farmers, IFA president Tim Cullinan has said.
The Tipperary native said he was astounded when he seen the details of the proposal.
“Bord Bia have gone back on their commitments to treat all categories of animal the same. They have banned all young bulls and other categories of animals even if they meet the grass-fed criteria.
“They also appear to have removed the latitude for animals to be indoors for longer in certain circumstances. This may well arise in some years in parts of the country where animals have to be housed earlier due to weather conditions,” he said.
Transport restrictions
Cullinan criticised the inclusion of a transport element that came “completely out of the blue”. The condition appears to suggest that animals must go to a factory less than two hours away from their home farm and that a licenced haulier must transport them.
The details of the proposal also state the animal’s meat has to be ‘a more pronounced cherry red’ with ‘creaminess’. This colour criteria will be judged by a quality control inspector for the meat processor.
“The last thing we need in factories is a new layer of graders to rule on meat colour and ‘creaminess’,” Cullinan said.
Factories
“When PGI was raised at the recent beef taskforce, it was clear that it needed a lot more discussion. The only party that was completely in favour of Bord Bia’s concept was Meat Industry Ireland (MII).
“The detail behind this proposal has been driven by MII and the factories. It is trying to give them even more control over farmers,” Cullinan stated.
As far as Cullinan is concerned, farmers need to be at the heart of the process.
“Any benefit in the market place must accrue to farmers as we are the ones who are creating the value by grass feeding our animals,” he said.
Meeting
The IFA president is seeking a meeting with Minister for Agriculture Dara Calleary to discuss the issue.
“Based on the current proposal, it’s likely to do more harm than good for farmers,” Cullinan concluded.
Read more
Restrictions on bulls and journey time in 'Irish Grass Fed Beef' standard
Restriction on journey time in ‘Irish Grass Fed Beef' is anti-competitive - ICSA
Bord Bia’s proposed application for protected geographical indication (PGI) status for Irish grass-fed beef will give factories more control over farmers, IFA president Tim Cullinan has said.
The Tipperary native said he was astounded when he seen the details of the proposal.
“Bord Bia have gone back on their commitments to treat all categories of animal the same. They have banned all young bulls and other categories of animals even if they meet the grass-fed criteria.
“They also appear to have removed the latitude for animals to be indoors for longer in certain circumstances. This may well arise in some years in parts of the country where animals have to be housed earlier due to weather conditions,” he said.
Transport restrictions
Cullinan criticised the inclusion of a transport element that came “completely out of the blue”. The condition appears to suggest that animals must go to a factory less than two hours away from their home farm and that a licenced haulier must transport them.
The details of the proposal also state the animal’s meat has to be ‘a more pronounced cherry red’ with ‘creaminess’. This colour criteria will be judged by a quality control inspector for the meat processor.
“The last thing we need in factories is a new layer of graders to rule on meat colour and ‘creaminess’,” Cullinan said.
Factories
“When PGI was raised at the recent beef taskforce, it was clear that it needed a lot more discussion. The only party that was completely in favour of Bord Bia’s concept was Meat Industry Ireland (MII).
“The detail behind this proposal has been driven by MII and the factories. It is trying to give them even more control over farmers,” Cullinan stated.
As far as Cullinan is concerned, farmers need to be at the heart of the process.
“Any benefit in the market place must accrue to farmers as we are the ones who are creating the value by grass feeding our animals,” he said.
Meeting
The IFA president is seeking a meeting with Minister for Agriculture Dara Calleary to discuss the issue.
“Based on the current proposal, it’s likely to do more harm than good for farmers,” Cullinan concluded.
Read more
Restrictions on bulls and journey time in 'Irish Grass Fed Beef' standard
Restriction on journey time in ‘Irish Grass Fed Beef' is anti-competitive - ICSA
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: