Minister defends our beef
But British retailers and consumers have been assured by Agriculture and Food Minister Mary Coughlan that Irish beef is a grass-based product, processed to the highest standards.
NBA chairman Duff Burrell said recent revelations about lower production standards in Brazil highlighted the gap between standards that satisfy importers and those required of UK produced beef.
"However, we are even more concerned at the differences between the UK's assurance principles and those required by the Beef Quality Assurance Scheme (BQAS) used in the Republic of Ireland, which is the source of a much bigger volume of imports."
Mr Burrell said about 158,000 tonnes of Irish beef, the equivalent of around 40% of Irish production and 22% of the UK's, was trucked in by supermarkets, caterers and manufacturers in 2004.
He claimed an Irish farmer can become an assured beef producer with just 58% compliance, whereas the British beef assurance schemes require 100% compliance.
The NBA says UK supermarkets are breaking the trust they have established with consumers, by giving no indication of lower assurance standards when retailing Irish beef.
However, Minister Mary Coughlan said Ireland has veterinary structures and traceability systems in place at all levels to ensure the high standards of the beef it produces and processes.
"We also have a beef quality assurance scheme that is similar to many such schemes in EU countries and is approved by the Irish National Accreditation Board (INAB) here, which is affiliated to the European Accreditation Agency," she said.
Mr Burrell condemned retail and distribution trade cynicism and enthusiasm for low provenance imports, is making fools of British farmers, who have worked hard to meet high production standards, and are being hit in the pocket by heavily discounted product from overseas.
He called on retailers to suspend deliveries of beef from Ireland, until standards are raised to UK levels.
Meanwhile, Bord Bia has launched a three year, 10 million promotion campaign for quality Irish beef in 8,000 stores across nine countries Britain, the Netherlands, Italy, France, Belgium, Spain, Germany, the Czech Republic and the home market.
