The chairman of the Beef Market Taskforce, Michael Dowling, has written to taskforce members to provide an update as to the current state of affairs, as of yesterday, Wednesday, May 13.
In his letter, Dowling outlined that it has not been possible to convene a meeting of the taskforce due to Covid-19.
However, while noting the significant changes of recent months, he added:
Work on all the taskforce actions continues in this new context.
Dowling provided members with a number of documents, including: an updated taskforce reports; a progress report from Grant Thornton on the three transparency studies; a market update from Bord Bia; and an update from the Department of Agriculture on the current Covid-19 situation as it relates to the sector.
The chairman said: “I am aware that the priority for all over this last number of months has been to safeguard their health and in as far possible to maintain their operations in the context of the need for rapid adaptation in uncertainty.
“It is perhaps more important than ever that we continue to work together towards the development of a sector which is as robust as possible in the face of crises such as the one we currently find ourselves in.
While it is evident that the timelines for a number of the actions will need to be revised in the context of the ongoing crisis, it is essential that we continue to drive our collective efforts to work together to ensure that the sector develops in a sustainable robust way.
The chairman concluded by stating he looks forward “to being able to convene a meeting of the Beef Taskforce as soon as is practical”.