Farmers learned how best to pass Bord Bia quality assurance audits at the open day on the farm of Harry and Amanda Murphy in Ferns, Enniscorthy. It also provided information on farm safety and farmer health and well-being.

Damien Walsh from Bord Bia outlined the need for a quality assurance scheme. “It is vital to support the Irish food industry and to reassure consumers on food safety, traceability and origin,” he said.

Kevin Humphreys discussed common mistakes farmers make when filling out animal remedy purchase records and animal remedy usage records. He outlined that records need to be pretty specific and require date of purchase, medicine name, quantity purchased and who it was supplied by.

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700 audits per week

According to Bord Bia, there are currently 51,000 farmers in the beef and lamb QA scheme, with a further 15,000 farmers in the dairy scheme. There are approximately 35,000 audits carried out around the country by 100 auditors, which works out at around 700 audits per week.

In April, a new close-out rule was introduced into the QA scheme. A farmer will be given a four-week opportunity to correct issues found during audit. During that period, the farmer remains certified and eligible for factory bonuses.

Of the 7,700 people audited under the new scheme, 90% have passed. The other 10%, who scored below 60% in the audit, were given 30 days to correct non-compliance. Only 15 farmers didn’t pass because they did not correct the issues found in their first audit.

The three main reasons farmers fail a Bord Bia QA audit were:

  • Health and safety
  • Remedies
  • Pollution

    • Farm Safety

    While Bord Bia and Teagasc delivered talks on the QA scheme, gardaí addressed the farmers on safety.

    Almost 50% of farm fatalities are caused by farm vehicles and machinery. Livestock, drowning and falls from height resulting in another 25% of farm deaths. Farmers were encouraged to complete a farm safety risk assessment and watched a quad safety demonstration.

    Brendan Condon and Adrian Nevin from An Garda Síochána urged farmers to be cautious on farms, encouraged them to have the correct licence for trailers and to be aware of weight restrictions.

    Mental health was also a major issue during the event, with farmers encouraged to take a proactive approach when facing difficulties.

    Read more

    10 things farmers should know about the QA scheme