Murrin going is not enough - Beef Plan

“Larry Murrin going is not enough – more change is needed,” Eamon Corley of the Beef Plan Movement has said.

“This includes a chair agreed by the stakeholders rather than appointed by the Minister.

“We’d be looking for a shake up in the Bord Bia board, with more beef farmer input so farmers have input and oversight. We think that’s reasonable,” he told the Irish Farmers Journal.

“It was Beef Plan that brought this issue to public attention after one of our members came across the labelling in a Subway restaurant,” Corley highlighted.

“Irish farmers work hard, and have pride in the food we produce and the way it is produced – no hormones, responsible use of antibiotics, with full traceability. This results in a premium beef product that is sought after around the world.

"But while farmers do all the work around quality assurance, processors effectively have control of Bord Bia. That can’t continue.”

Corley said that Beef Plan members would be part of a broad farmer presence in Dublin on Thursday outside Dáil Éireann. “Consumers trust that they can order food and don’t have to worry about antibiotic resistance or carcinogenic hormones,” he said.

“We don’t want greedy processors using that to their advantage, we can’t have another horsemeat-type scandal where the food people consume is different to what they expect.”