Sinn Féin has called on Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue to find a solution to address concerns raised around changes to the beef index.

The changes, which were made by the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF), to the indices have caused significant frustration and worry within the farming community, Sinn Féin spokesperson on agriculture Deputy Claire Kerrane has said.

She said that she has been contacted by many farmers and breeders, who are seriously concerned about the changes to the beef index and the impact this could have on the sector.

"Some breeders have, overnight, taken a financial hit of thousands of euro and, in some cases, in excess of €100,000. This is financial ruin for these farm families.

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"The ICBF came before the agriculture committee and while they acknowledged the impact of index changes on some farmers and breeders and stated that they do not want to see them negatively impacted, they are not willing to pause this and engage, as they should have in the first place.

"Instead, they propose to establish a stakeholders' forum next year, which makes no sense," she said.

Deputy Kerrane said that she told the ICBF this week that they should pause the changes to the index, revert to the previous index and engage with all stakeholders now.

"For the sake of a number of months, I think this is a reasonable request.

"There are question marks over the new inclusion of carbon in the index and while reducing greenhouse gases is something we can all agree on, this is not the way to bring farmers with us when it comes to climate action.

“In their fair criticism of the proposed changes, farmers have been clear that they will follow the data and the science when it comes to farming practices.

"However, that data and science must also be underpinned by engagement with suckler farmers and breeders. This has not happened," she said.

It is critical, she argued, that the Minister works with the ICBF to come up with a solution "that works for suckler farmers and breeders, and this is something that I will be pushing for".