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The first thing the beef taskforce will have to do at its initial meeting on Monday is to address outstanding injunctions against farmers, IFA president Joe Healy has said.
Farm organisations and Meat Industry Ireland (MII) are among those who will be present when the taskforce meet at 10am on Monday at the Department of Agriculture on Kildare Street.
Last week, Cllr Padraic Brady from Longford told the Irish Farmers Journal that an injunction was still outstanding over him and another farmer by C&D Foods, a pet food company which is owned by Larry Goodman.
The IFA represented dozens of farmers in court and most have had injunctions lifted, but some remain. These will have to resolved immediately, the IFA said.
It also said that the deadlines set out in the beef sector agreement that have already been missed will also have to be resolved.
It’s now four weeks later and farmers are still waiting.
“The beef sector agreement specifically states that the beef price index would be introduced from 16 September. It’s now four weeks later and farmers are still waiting.
“This is to be a key tool ensuring more transparency on meat and offal markets, giving accurate verified information on price trends to keep the factories honest on the base price. We need it immediately,” Healy said.
Trust
There was a lot of talk about building trust during the talks, but the factories have shown no interest in this, according to the IFA, adding that the way they have imposed weight limits in recent weeks has frustrated and angered farmers and undermined the in-spec bonus increases in the agreement.
“To try and rebuild trust with farmers, factories will have to fundamentally change their approach,” the IFA president said.
Joe Healy and the IFA’s director of livestock Kevin Kinsella will be the IFA representatives at the beef taskforce.
The Beef Plan Movement has said that the organisation will be seeking to have the taskforce adjourned until such a time as letters of discontinuance are issued to all farmers under legal threat and injunction.
“Beef Plan will deliver in person, a letter to the beef taskforce chairman to address and bring about a resolution to the above issues, which we require immediate action on so that the beef taskforce can resume for the purpose for which it has been set up.”
The group understands that meetings of the taskforce will be quarterly. It said it wants the meetings to be every fortnight, for the next three months.
Meat Industry Ireland (MII) said on Monday that it was entering the talks with an optimistic view on what processors and farming representatives could achieve together in implementing all elements of the agreement reached on 15 September.
A spokesperson from MII said “already, MII member companies have implemented the principal bonus related elements of the agreement which have benefited farmers on cattle processed since 22 September.
“In addition, the commitment to withdraw legal proceedings connected to the illegal blockading of beef plants has been honoured by the beef companies concerned,” they said.
MII notes that other aspects of the agreement are important to making progress in our sector, and MII is fully committed to working on the implementation of these, the spokesperson said, adding that the remit of the taskforce is not renegotiation but to monitor the implementation of the agreement.
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