Disillusioned farmers are increasingly of the opinion that quality assurance (QA) schemes are little more than “waffle at the expense of the farmers”.

Speaking at the association’s annual general meeting in Limerick on Monday, ICMSA president John Comer said that while QA schemes were now part of farming, farmers had very mixed views on them and need to be convinced of their merits.

“Farmers need to see a dividend in terms of milk, beef and sheepmeat prices. We were told that these schemes were required to get into value-added markets, but, as usual, the farmers did the work while the others got the dividend,” he said.

“Bord Bia and our processors continually pronounce their sustainability credentials with expensive advertising and marketing campaigns, but the farmer supplier is now rightly asking what about our financial sustainability?”

“There’s never any mention of farmers’ sustainability and the feeling has grown that these quality schemes are little more than waffle – and waffle at the expense of the farmers,” said Comer.

Full coverage: ICMSA AGM 2016

QA schemes are ‘expensive marketing waffle’

ICMSA president John Comer said farmers need to see a dividend from quality assurance schemes.