An immediate price increase for cattle is the first test of the Beef Market taskforce according to the Irish Farmers’ Association’s (IFA’s) National Livestock Committee chairman, Angus Woods.
Commenting on yesterday’s reconvened meeting of the beef taskforce, the Wicklow farmer and IFA presidential candidate said: “The positive words around the table needs to translate into something that everyone understands, and that is a significant increase in the price of cattle at factories.”
Woods – who is a beef, sheep and tillage farmer – continued: “The reconvening of the taskforce is overdue, but welcome. And while there were many positive words around the table – particularly from Meat Industry Ireland (MII) – farmers need to see these translate into immediate price increases for cattle being sold at the factory.
This will help stock to move in our domestic market and support farm incomes in the livestock sector which have been on the floor for too long.
“Unless there is a significant price increase in the coming days, the Task Force will be seen to fall at the first hurdle. This will undermine the confidence of livestock farmers in its work and prolong the unacceptable income crisis that livestock farmers have been struggling under for too long.