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The Beef Plan Movement intends to focus on contract killing cattle for its members within six months rather than pursuing its 86-point plan.
Chair Eamon Corley told the Irish Farmers Journal at its Meath meeting last Thursday night that the strategy had changed after the founders travelled around the country.
It plans to engage independent factories to contract kill animals for a set fee per head, paid for by the Beef Plan Movement.
The slaughtered animals would then be marketed and sold “with the help of people who have knowledge and expertise in marketing”.
These marketing companies would pay the Beef Plan Movement for the cattle when containers of beef were loaded.
The Beef Plan Movement, in turn, would pay the farmer for the cattle.
One such marketing company, Gloricent International, was represented by Cary Languirand at the meeting. Languirand said his company would be willing to pay between €4.70/kg and €4.90/kg for E, U or R grade cattle.
At a previous Beef Plan Movement meeting in Kanturk, Co Cork, the same man said he would pay €5.15/kg or €5.20/kg for Irish beef.
At both meetings, he claimed Gloricent wanted to fill contracts for Chinese clients seeking high-quality beef.
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