Farmer stages sit-in at Dairygold boardroom

Ned McCarthy is refusing to leave the boardroom until he gets the value of his shares and money owed to him which he estimates all comes to about €23,000.

On Thursday, a small number of previous suppliers were invited to individual talks with the Dairygold co-op board to discuss the valuation and repayment of their shareholding in the co-op they had previously supplied.

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal from the boardroom, Ned McCarthy said when he refused to turn off his phone his individual meeting was abandoned and the board members present left the room. McCarthy remained in the boardroom and is refusing to leave until he “gets the value of his shareholding”.

As per the co-op rulebook, Dairygold had offered to repay McCarthy the value of his shares on a phased basis starting five years from when membership finishes with the co-op at a rate of 20% per year from year five to nine.

McCarthy said “following the meeting yesterday evening (Thursday) Dairygold seemed to have fast tracked my expulsion from Dairygold as I received a letter to that effect yesterday evening. I have shares to the value of €18,000, funds paid into a revolving fund and bonuses that were not paid which I estimate in total comes to about €23,000 owed to me.”

On Friday afternoon, McCarthy claimed that Dairygold secretary Eamonn Looney walked into the board room with a letter which he believes was a legal letter or court injunction to remove him from the board room but he did not read it.

I took the letter, tore it up and put it in the bin

McCarthy said, “I took the letter, tore it up and put it in the bin.”

He also said he had received a nice lunch and was being well looked after.

A spokesperson for Dairygold provided the Irish Farmers Journal with the following statement.

“While he continues his protest he will be afforded every appropriate courtesy, refreshment and assistance. It would not however, be appropriate for Dairygold to comment further on the particular former supplier’s circumstances and personal criticisms of the society.”

Ned McCarthy is part of a group of Dairygold suppliers that last year were publicly making statements against the investment by Dairygold Co-op in new processing investments among other issues. Ned is farming near Macroom and makes yoghurt from some of the milk produced on his farm while supplying the balance to Arrabawn Co-op headquartered in Nenagh, Co Tipperary.

Additional reporting from Patrick Donohoe