IFA president Joe Healy confronted An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar outside a Cabinet meeting in Cork City Hall on Tuesday morning.

The IFA is protesting outside the meeting of An Taoiseach and his ministers and is demanding a retrospective aid package to be implemented immediately for beef farmers.

As the Taoiseach arrived at City Hall and attempted to enter the building he was greeted with calls from protesters of “where’s the beef, you vegan” and “you’ve turned your back on rural Ireland”.

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Healy told the Taoiseach that Brexit has already cost beef farmers an estimated €101m in the last six months.

Healy said: “We don’t want the Government to hide behind the [European] Commission and we don’t want the Commission to hide behind the Government. We need support because next October is too late.”

Varadkar told Healy that he understood farmers were struggling as a result of poor prices.

However, he also said: “At the same time anything we do is with taxpayers’ money.”

He cited the supports beef farmers already receive and said the Government is continuing to work with the EU Commission.

Healy replied that the Commission was too slow and farmers needed an answer after today’s meeting.

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Farmers gathering ahead of beef protest in Cork