The five protesters who remain inside Bord Bia HQ were anointed with ashes this ash Wednesday by a nun, who was granted permission to enter the building.
The Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) formally requested that the nun be allowed to enter to the building to give the IFA protesters ashes.
The request was granted by Bord Bia and the nun went into the lobby.
It's day 16 of the IFA's peaceful sit-in at Bord Bia and day 24 of the protest outside the building. The IFA has plans in place to continue the protest until Larry Murrin is removed as chair of the State agency.
IFA farm family chair Teresa Roche is one of the five inside and said that they're staying positive and upbeat, adding that it has been a progressive week with a lot of negotiations.
Quite content
Richard Moeran, a farmer from Cavan, who is also inside the doors of the Bord Bia lobby, told the Irish Farmers Journal on Wednesday evening that they've nothing to want and they're quite content, having just got their evening meal delivered around 5pm.
"We can grind it out, but I don't think that Bord Bia can. The pressure on Bord Bia after 16 days of being closed down is immense.
"Every hour that we're in here is making Bord Bia's problem bigger and more awkward and, effectively, you have 180 people that work for Bord Bia and at the moment they're all working from home.
"The realisation that we're not going anywhere has now forced the hand of the board to have a discussion and that discussion began today at their board meeting. We don't know what happened, but I would think that there are some fractures beginning to show," Moeran said.
No upside
He said that there is not one upside to Murrin remaining as chair of Bord Bia.
Meanwhile, Roche asked how Government or the Minister for Agriculture are willing to stand behind someone who has brought in Brazilian beef "under the reputation of Irish farmers".
"We feel that the public is 100% behind us and we're receiving huge support. The main issue is Larry Murrin's chair is untenable and he has to go," Roche said.
On Tuesday, National Ploughing Association directors Anna May McHugh and Anna Marie McHugh visited the IFA protest outside Bord Bia headquarters on Pembroke Road to support the farmers on the picket.
Read more
Five remain inside Bord Bia lobby
Opinion: Government standing by their man, while the IFA stands by its demand
Dawn Farm Foods was listed as QA on Bord Bia website when it was not QA
The five protesters who remain inside Bord Bia HQ were anointed with ashes this ash Wednesday by a nun, who was granted permission to enter the building.
The Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) formally requested that the nun be allowed to enter to the building to give the IFA protesters ashes.
The request was granted by Bord Bia and the nun went into the lobby.
It's day 16 of the IFA's peaceful sit-in at Bord Bia and day 24 of the protest outside the building. The IFA has plans in place to continue the protest until Larry Murrin is removed as chair of the State agency.
IFA farm family chair Teresa Roche is one of the five inside and said that they're staying positive and upbeat, adding that it has been a progressive week with a lot of negotiations.
Quite content
Richard Moeran, a farmer from Cavan, who is also inside the doors of the Bord Bia lobby, told the Irish Farmers Journal on Wednesday evening that they've nothing to want and they're quite content, having just got their evening meal delivered around 5pm.
"We can grind it out, but I don't think that Bord Bia can. The pressure on Bord Bia after 16 days of being closed down is immense.
"Every hour that we're in here is making Bord Bia's problem bigger and more awkward and, effectively, you have 180 people that work for Bord Bia and at the moment they're all working from home.
"The realisation that we're not going anywhere has now forced the hand of the board to have a discussion and that discussion began today at their board meeting. We don't know what happened, but I would think that there are some fractures beginning to show," Moeran said.
No upside
He said that there is not one upside to Murrin remaining as chair of Bord Bia.
Meanwhile, Roche asked how Government or the Minister for Agriculture are willing to stand behind someone who has brought in Brazilian beef "under the reputation of Irish farmers".
"We feel that the public is 100% behind us and we're receiving huge support. The main issue is Larry Murrin's chair is untenable and he has to go," Roche said.
On Tuesday, National Ploughing Association directors Anna May McHugh and Anna Marie McHugh visited the IFA protest outside Bord Bia headquarters on Pembroke Road to support the farmers on the picket.
Read more
Five remain inside Bord Bia lobby
Opinion: Government standing by their man, while the IFA stands by its demand
Dawn Farm Foods was listed as QA on Bord Bia website when it was not QA
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