Farmers aligned with the Individual Farmers of Ireland are due to return to the streets of Dublin next week.
Following yesterday’s meeting of the Beef Market Taskforce, the grouping maintains that the talks failed to produce enough progress on the issue of the price they receive for beef.
This week Tipp Mid West was told by a local representative of the grouping about their fears for the future of family farms and of the impact that the current challenges they face will have on local, rural communities, if not resolved soon.
Diarmuid Henebry yesterday said that he had little hope that this week’s meeting of the task force would produce any tangible benefits, and he predicted that farmers aligned with the Individual Farmers’ group will be back protesting in Dublin next Wednesday.
fast becoming a talking shop designed to pacify farmers
Commenting after the meeting concluded, Mr. Henebry said that in his view, it is ‘fast becoming a talking shop designed to pacify farmers’ concerns without an intention from the government or the meat industry to solve this impasse’.
The demonstration will take place in the capital next Wednesday, January 15th and Thursday, January 16th.
Meanwhile, it is reported that retailers are due to return to talks in March when a study on the market and consumer requirements and their relationship to current beef specifications is complete.
Yesterday’s taskforce meeting heard that retailers are less stringent in their demand for beef coming from cattle under the age of 30 months than they are about beef coming from quality-assured farms.
