Speculation has been rife in recent weeks as to the content of Bord Bia’s beef and lamb quality assurance scheme which is set to undergo significant change.
Bord Bia has been engaged in negotiations with farm organisations over the future of the scheme
The Chairperson of ICMSA’s Livestock Committee, Michael Guinan, has expressed confidence that a new procedure for addressing problems will be in place similar to the system that operates for the dairy scheme and this should ensure that farmers maintain their ‘Approved’ status while dealing with issues that arose during the inspection.
“We identified this as a major issue with the existing scheme whereby farmers were suspended from the scheme for relatively minor issues and lost their QA bonus as a result and also encountered problems with getting cattle slaughtered in some cases.
“Given the nature of farming, there will always be issues of a usually minor nature arising and it is sensible to implement and operate a system that recognises this fact but allows the farmer time to resolve the issue while maintaining their QA status.
“This is ICMSA’s objective and we fully expect such a system to be implemented,” he said.
Also Read: See the proposed changes to the Bord Bia QA schemeAccording to Guinan, there are many other aspects of the scheme that are causing problems including the length and detail of the inspection.we’ve made proposals to Bord Bia around simplifying the process and reduce the time period for an inspection.
“We’ve made proposals to Bord Bia around simplifying the process and reduce the time period for an inspection,” he said.
Guinan said Bord Bia needs to make practical changes to the scheme that reflect reality.
“Farmers are focussing on the emphasis on sustainability in the scheme and they’re rightly asking about their economic and financial sustainability which they’re demanding is moved up the agenda in a way that shows them the practical benefits from their participation – as opposed to just a series of expensive pitfalls,” he said.