New appointments to LMC board

Agriculture Minister Michelle O’Neill has announced three new appointments to the board of the Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC).

They are former UFU president, Harry Sinclair, Co Armagh beef farmer Jim Lennon and company secretary for Fane Valley Co-op Society Ltd, Oonagh Chesney.

Their appointments are effective from 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2018. The posts attract remuneration of £6,485 per annum.

Confirming the new appointments, the Minister said: “These new board members bring a wealth of experience of the agri-food industry, including an understanding of red-meat production and processing, as well as good governance, which will be very helpful to the work of the LMC.”

However, that still leaves one board position to be filled.

As reported a number of weeks ago, meat processor representatives refused to take part in the initial competition, arguing that the open nature of the competition meant that they could lose out to a candidate from outside the meat industry.

In what looks like an attempt to address those concerns, the Minister indicated that she will soon be inviting applications for an additional board member with specific livestock processing and/or livestock marketing experience. Hopefully, that will help to resolve the current impasse.

The other issue to be resolved is the position of chair of the LMC, which was advertised at the same time as the four board positions. The Irish Farmers Journal understands that no suitable candidate emerged from the initial interview process.

It will therefore be re-advertised in the coming weeks. The term of the current chair Pat O’Rourke runs to 6 November 2015.