Many shelves in both Lidl and Aldi in Cavan town remain empty today (Monday, October 3), as pig, poultry and egg farmers continue protesting outside the supermarkets for a fifth day.
The protesters have been demonstrating outside both stores since Thursday morning (September 29), and have been blocking deliveries each night to put pressure on the supermarkets to negotiate.
As a result of the delivery blockades, both supermarkets are without many fruit, vegetable, milk, egg, bread and meat products, forcing some customers to go elsewhere for their groceries.
Speaking to Agriland, Frank Brady, the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) regional chairman for Ulster and North Leinster, said that they will not allow any supplies in:
“Lidl tried to bring in a lorry [of stock] this morning, they were going to bring it in by hand but they weren’t allowed.
“The are shelves that are completely empty in both stores now, it just shows how important farmers are and how quickly food can disappear.
“People have to understand that farmers are here for their benefit as well.”
Those on the picket line at both stores insist that “they will remain at the sites for the foreseeable, until the supermarkets come to the table”.
As they continue to rotate shifts throughout the fifth day of the action, Brady said that those involved remain in good spirits.
“Morale was never as high, Lidl tried to break the blockade today and it just made morale even higher.”
According to the protesters, the farmers and producers on the picket line have been losing money for 400 days due to below cost selling. They are calling for an extra 2c per egg, 15c per chicken and 10c per kilo of pork supplied.
Despite low stock levels, Lidl has said that the store remains open for business as usual. It said “the store remains open and no employees have been sent home”.
However, it would not provide any further comment on the matter. Aldi was also contacted by Agriland for a comment on the matter but at the time of publication, no response had been received.