UK fury over cheap Irish beef imports
Steer carcase prices are 46p per kg lower than the same time in 2013.
Farmers' Union of Wales president Emyr Jones said he has been inundated with calls from farmers losing money due to reduced beef prices, and faced with cancelled slaughterhouse bookings. “There is also real anger about the proportion of imported meat coming on to the UK market, undermining prices and reducing throughputs in our abattoirs.”
“None of us wants to see a return to the type of conditions which prompted direct action against imports in the 1990s.” added Mr Jones.
A review into the future of the beef industry in Wales will be conducted by Hybu Cig Cymru (HCC, Meat Promotion Wales) as worries grow over the dramatic price fall.
HCC’s chairman Dai Davies said, “Throughput at Irish export abattoirs is up by 13.6% so far in 2014 compared with the same period in 2013, meaning that more than 50,000 additional prime cattle have entered the food chain. Irish producers are receiving the equivalent of around 310p per kg for their cattle.
“This has led to an increase in imports of Irish beef into the UK, undercutting the price paid to farmers in Britain.”
The HCC expressed similar concerns at the beginning of the year when Polish beef exports to the rest of the EU increased by 4%. Chris Mallon, national director at the UK’s National Beef Association, has also pointed to Irish imports undercutting prices.
He said, “A temporary over-supply in Ireland has caused this reduced price in Irish beef.
“At the moment it means reduced returns for British farmers, but in the long term it is preventing them re-investing and increasing their herd size.”
