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The beef protest outside ABP’s Ferrybank processing site in Waterford has been stood down.
A vote took place on Wednesday night, with the decision taken to cease protesting.
After a token protest on Wednesday night, the Irish Farmers Journal understands that the protest at Slaney Foods in Clohamon, Co Wexford, has also been stood down.
'Best interests'
News of the protests at ABP Ferrybank and Slaney ceasing comes after the protest at Dawn Meats in Slane was stood down on Wednesday.
The protesters at Slane said they ended their picket “in the best interests of the beef industry”.
In a statement, they said while the deal agreed last weekend did not have all the answers, it was the first step of “a root and branch overhaul of the Irish beef industry”.
€120m cattle backlog
As revealed by the Irish Farmers Journal on Thursday, the beef kill is running at 67,000 head below normal since the dispute started.
This week’s kill is expected to be as low as 7,000 cattle and could potentially be the lowest weekly kill in decades apart from exceptional weather events.
This means the backlog on farms is now heading for 100,000 cattle, worth about €120m.
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