Beef Pricewatch ‘fuelling suspicions over cattle pricing’, ICMSA claims

The Department of Agriculture’s Beef Pricewatch gives farmers near irrelevant information, fuelling suspicions regarding cattle pricing, said ICMSA livestock chairman, Michael Guinan.

Mr Guinan said the new PriceWatch gives an average price based on the beef grid. He said, given all the other specifications at play, this average is almost irrelevant.

In recent replies to Dáil questions on the price dispute between beef farmers and meat plants, Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney said his department is working to deliver greater transparency in the sector.