Factory fire adds to woes of already-under-pressure farmers

THE fire that destroyed Glanbia’s pigmeat processing plant in Edenderry, Co Offaly, has come at a difficult time for the industry.

A total of 400 producers supply nearly three million pigs a year to a dwindling number of processing plants, but these farmers are now under pressure from rising feed prices and a likely impact on costs later this year from the nitrates directive.

A backlog of pig supplies arising from the Edenderry fire would exacerbate their situation in an industry that accounts for 7% of agricultural output.

Glanbia is the country’s largest processor of pigs with two plants — the one gutted by the fire in Edenderry, which took in 10,000 pigs a week, and another plant at Roscrea, which has capacity for continuous slaughtering of up to 16,500 pigs a week on fully automated and synchronised lines.

The pig industry is worth €320 million annually to Irish farmers and pigmeat exports are valued in the region of €250m.

But a number of processing plants including Galtee Meats in Mitchelstown have been closed in recent years and pig farmers have also raised concerns about the growing retail threat of imported products.

The former food minister Ned O’Keeffe TD, whose family are large pig farmers in Mitchelstown, Co Cork, claimed the impact of the fire at the Edenderry plant is a catastrophe for the industry and its processing capacity.

He accused Enterprise Ireland of failing to restructure the traditional pig processing industry, which survived many ups and downs since Ireland joined the EU.

Mr O’Keeffe warned there is now the prospect that producers will have to export pigs for processing.

However, Glanbia said that it will deal with all supplies booked in this week and that no pigs will be turned back.

Meanwhile, Bord Bia’s annual report states little change is expected in Irish pig supplies this year due to a stable breeding herd. Meat plant supplies look set to be maintained at about the 2.6m mark.

Only minor changes are expected in EU pigmeat production, such as increased trade with Bulgaria and Romania following their accession as member states.

However, poultry is likely to place pressure on pigmeat as it regains market share, following an easing of consumer fears over bird flu.

Bord Bia says that any further strengthening of the euro against the dollar would reduce EU pigmeat competitiveness on world markets as would a return to full market access for Brazilian pigmeat to Russia.

However, consumer demand within the EU looks set to remain stable.