IFA: Government should defend the interests of those who elected them
Ms Spelman has told her cabinet members that they should only award future public food supply contracts to producers who meet British quality standards. A spokesperson for Defra, Britain’s Department of Agriculture, notes: “The issue is one of quality, not origin.”
The IFA has several times requested of various Irish ministries to adopt a similar strategy, but says it has been repeatedly rebuffed on the basis of EU anti-protectionist laws.
IFA poultry chairman and Cavan-based poultry farmer Alo Mohan said: “The ministers need to start acting like ministers, as Caroline Spelman has done, and promote local suppliers’ interests. They tell us to act patriotically and buy local, but they need to act patriotically themselves and stop passing the buck and blaming European laws.
“I am sitting here in Cavan, five minutes from the northern border, yet I bought my tractor here in the south. I buy all my supplies here. Britain, Germany and France are all making sure that their local food produce is being used by their departments of Health and Defence. Why can’t we do the same?”
The IFA reacted strongly to a recent Department of Defence decision to award a €1.5m two-year beef and bacon contract to Co Down-based firm.
Defence Minister Tony Killeen replied at the time: “The award of the contract follows from an open tender competition which was advertised on the Department of Finance’s e-tender website and which was published in the Official Journal of the European Union in January.
“Eleven tenders were received and evaluated. The significant factor related to cost.”
In a letter to all other secretaries of state regarding food procurement, Ms Spelman wrote: “The Government is committed to ensuring that food procured by government departments, and eventually the whole public sector, meets British standards of production wherever this can be achieved without increasing overall costs.
“The public sector spends £2bn (€2.4bn) on food procurement annually. This provides a powerful opportunity for the public sector to show leadership to support British food standards and provide food which is healthy, sustainable and ethically sourced.”
Britain’s new coalition government said it was unfair to impose regulations on British producers, while at the same time buying cheaper food at lower standards from elsewhere. And it said price should not be the principal factor guiding tendering choices.
IFA president John Bryan has called on the Irish Government to match Britain’s commitment to its agriculture and food industry, and to prioritise local, quality-assured food suppliers.
Mr Bryan said: “In the recent past, the HSE and the defence forces have been guilty of awarding food supply contracts to companies outside the state at the expense of Irish producers and jobs. The IFA has strongly criticised state bodies for not prioritising Irish, quality-assured produce.
“As a country which proudly brands itself Ireland ‘The Food Island,’ it is time the issue was addressed.
“The Government has encouraged major investment by Irish farmers, Bord Bia and processors in developing the highest standards through the Bord Bia Quality Assurance scheme. Failure to insist on this standard for all procurement contracts displays a disjointed approach.”
Mr Bryan’s stance was echoed by a recent study by the EU farmer body COPA, which noted that food produced outside of the EU costs about 25% less to farm.
Mr Mohan said: “If you don’t stay local, you’re not just hitting farmers, you’re hitting processors, feed mills, hatcheries, breeder farms and spin-offs like haulage firms. All we’re asking for is a level playing pitch.”
