Price differences fuel distrust between farmers, processors

The apparent difference in price between the UK, particularly Britain, and Ireland is one of the greatest causes of distrust between farmers and processors, the Beef Activation Group chairman Michael Dowling has said in his report to the recent second beef roundtable.

“That there is a difference is not in dispute, and that some difference should exist is not generally denied, given that one is a large deficit market, and the other is a large surplus producing area, and that there are transport and other costs to be taken into account.

“But the size of the difference as measured in terms of R3 carcases is generally seen as excessive.”