DEAR SIR: I read with interest Phelim O’Neill’s piece regarding the opportunities that a PGI status would give Irish beef farmers. I have been able to visit supermarkets in some of our continental markets and was impressed with the presence that Bord Bia has been able to make with its promotions of Irish beef.

Phelim O’Neill makes a number of very relevant points on the advantage that a PGI could have for Irish beef producers in those markets. If our grass-based system is something that helps to build the Irish beef brand in Europe – and with the chaos that Brexit will wreak in our biggest market in Britain – is it not high time that we rallied around the PGI in order to secure this much-needed opportunity to grow our European markets, as a matter of urgency?