The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA) has said that it is ‘incontestable’ that a regulator for the beef sector is required.
Dermot Kelleher, the association’s president, said the office of food ombudsman, which the government has committed to establishing, needed to be “ramped up” with additional legislation to “create an effective regulator for the beef chain”.
Speaking this morning (Tuesday, March 30), Kelleher argued that a recent claim by Meat Industry Ireland (MII) – that farmers receive 80% of the revenue generated from sales of beef by processors – “have only served to increase anger about fairness in the food chain”.
The figure quoted by MII was based on information provided by Grant Thornton at the most recent meeting of the Beef Market Taskforce.
Kelleher claimed that Grant Thornton’s information “is hampered by an apparent lack of full co-operation from some players in the food chain”.
It seems there is nothing that can be done to overcome this as the consultants [Grant Thornton] simply have no power to compel retailers or processors to co-operate.
“However, it is clear that not all players in the food chain are forthcoming with worthwhile information and we need a full explanation from Grant Thornton on where the lack of co-operation is emanating from,” the ICSA president argued.
He added: “Hiding behind commercial sensitivity is a cop-out…. It is shocking that decision makers at EU level and national level have been very strong at regulating publicly-quoted companies…but seem totally negligent when it comes to something as important as the food chain”.
We cannot allow the information to be hidden behind private company structures, nor buried in the complex business models of multi-billion retailers.
“Both the primary producer and the consumer should be entitled to know, at least at the aggregate level, where the margins are being made and whether food is priced fairly or not,” Kelleher stressed.
Fifth quarter
He went on to highlight the issue of the fifth quarter, calling it a “very opaque area”.
“It is clear to us that statutory agencies have a very limited grasp of what this is worth to processors. We see pet food superstores selling various fifth quarter pieces as pet ‘treats’ priced at €19/kg to €28/kg.
“It is astounding that we are led to believe that consumers find prime beef cuts dear at €10/kg to €24/kg, yet the same consumers have no bother forking out more for the leftovers for their pet,” Kelleher argued.
“[We] believe that there must be the political will to get to the bottom of this and this is why robust legislation is required to get accurate answers,” he added.