Letter to the editor: Is a crowded mart 'any better than a crowded pub in Temple Bar'?

I felt the need to contact you, with regard to the situation whereby a mart is allowed to continue to remain open for business.

I am a farmer’s wife, as well as working as a nurse, so I can appreciate both sides of the current [coronavirus] Covid-19 dilemma.

However, Dr. Holahan [the state’s chief medical officer] suggested this morning [Sunday, March 15] that the scenes in pubs in Temple Bar in Dublin over the weekend were akin to an insult to doctors and nurses on the front-line – in the effort to slow and curtail the spread of the virus.

Is the continuation of overcrowded ring-sides at marts across the country not similar?

Who is in charge of this decision to allow these marts to continue to operate? Why won’t they make the call to close all of the marts…in everyone’s best interest?

From a reader in Co. Wexford (name supplied but not published)

On another mart-themed topic (also relating to coronavirus), we also received this letter (below) – from a farmer/reader in the west of Ireland.

‘Best practice’ at marts; it’s not happening!’

I wanted to write to you to share my experience in my local mart yesterday [Saturday, March 14] – given what’s happening around the country with regard to coronavirus [Covid-19].

While stewards [at the mart] made some efforts to marshall numbers in and out of rings, there was clearly no attempt to enforce social distancing between people. Also, no hand sanitiser was to be seen in any of the rings.

I’m a farmer who sold yesterday…and who needed to sell. However, having seen what was happening I chose to spend my time in the tractor when I didn’t need to be with the auctioneer.

We need to keep the system moving – I’m not trying to stop the marts – but they need to be responsible. I thought what happened yesterday was crazy.

Listening to RTÉ’s Countrywide yesterday morning, I got the impression that all marts would be operating inline with best practice. Clearly it’s not happening [everywhere]; it needs to!

From a farmer/reader in the west of Ireland (name supplied but not published; name of the mart – along with pictures taken yesterday at the mart – also supplied, but not published)