The cost of the Governance Ireland report which reviewed the board effectiveness of Bord Bia cost the Department of Agriculture €45,100, excluding VAT, the Irish Farmers Journal has learned.
This is on top of the €220,000 of taxpayer money that Bord Bia spent on security during the Irish Farmers' Association's (IFA) five-week stint at its headquarters earlier this year.
It mounted its protest after it was revealed that the chair of the State agency Larry Murrin’s company Dawn Farm Foods imported Brazilian beef in 2025.
The report was published on Friday last by Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon who said he would be requesting that Murrin and the board deliver an action plan to address the 22 recommendations in the report.
He plans to meet the IFA and the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association (ICMSA), both of whose presidents sit on the board, on Thursday.
Findings
The report does not recommend that Murrin should step down from his role.
It found that Bord Bia’s board is “very capable, engaged and committed, with a strong governance foundation with solid structures and processes”.
The report to emerge from the review cites a survey of Bord Bia’s board members, stating that 83% of members see the board as “operating effectively as a governing body”.
However, it found that the board of Bord Bia did not hit the target level at which high-performing boards should be when it comes to certain areas around conflicts of interest.
It also found that the board should review the current oversight structures in relation to the overall strategy of Bord Bia and the Origin Green and quality assurance (QA) programmes.
IFA president Francie Gorman has said that as long as Murrin remains as chair, farmers will not have confidence in Bord Bia.
SHARING OPTIONS