Price was “the elephant in the room” at the beef talks, which concluded in the early hours of Wednesday morning, IFA president Joe Healy has said.
The talks took place on the precondition that price would not be discussed and Healy said farmers will be disappointed that there was no increase on the main issue. He said EU and Government support was urgently required for beef farmers in the middle of a severe income crisis.
With 71 days left to the next Brexit deadline, Healy said: “IFA made it very clear to Minister Creed [that] additional EU and Government Brexit supports and direct aid for farmers are urgently required."
On imports, Healy said: “It should be ensured that imports which do not meet the same stringent standards as EU producers are banned.”
Agreed points
The IFA said it secured a strong position for additional funding for targeted direct support for suckler cows.
Other points agreed were:
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