Beef processors fume over protests

Beef processors reacted negatively to yesterday’s IFA protest at Kepak, Clonee, Co Meath; Dawn Meats, Grannagh, Co Waterford; and ABP, Nenagh, Co Tipperary.

Cormac Healy, director of Meat Industry Ireland, said the beef industry had significant engagement with IFA in recent weeks in one-to-one company meetings throughout the country and at national level in an MII meeting with IFA leadership, where the industry agreed to work to clear the backlog of out-of-spec young bulls and explained some of difficulties in the European beef market at present.

Mr Healy said it was disappointing to see IFA reverting to disruptive tactics, which “will do nothing to improve the returns from the marketplace or tackle the real outside threats to the beef sector”.