IFA stages commission sit-in at beef report delay
About 30 farmers, who began their action during the early afternoon, demanded the immediate release of a European Union report on Brazilian beef which they claimed has been withheld for the last six months.
The European Commission said in a statement that it regretted what it described as the invasion of its public information centre in Dublin by a group of protesting farmers.
“The consequent disruption to members of the public at large as well as staff is deeply regrettable. The commission is grateful to An Garda Síochána for their prompt response and security back-up,” it said.
The Commission said the European Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) carried out an inspection in Brazil last March which covered, among other matters, conditions relating to beef exports to the EU.
“The draft report on the inspection by the FVO in Brazil has been prepared. The FVO expects to be able to publish its report in the coming weeks and it will then appear on its website,” it said.
IFA Livestock Committee chairman John Bryan said there is a widespread belief among livestock farmers that there is a cover-up regarding the double standards on Brazilian beef imports.
Cattle traceability and movement controls are unreliable or non-existent. Border controls and foot and mouth disease controls are ineffective, he said.
Earlier this month, the EU Health Commissioner, Markos Kypriano, told the Agriculture and Environment Committee of the European Parliament that the preliminary conclusions of the latest FVO report, which had not been finalised at that stage, did not justify an urgent change of EU policy regarding Brazil, as far as beef imports were concerned.
