asked the Minister for Agriculture whether he was aware of a public notice to pig producers in the west of Ireland issued by six bacon factories to the effect that on and from 1st January, 1960, these bacon factories will not accept pigs live weight; and, if so, whether he was consulted by the factories prior to this step; and whether he is aware that this decision is to the disadvantage of the pig producers in remote areas.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Notice to Western Pig Producers.
34.
I have seen the notice to which the Deputy refers. There was no obligation on these factories to consult me beforehand. The payment for pigs according to deadweight and grade is advantageous to producers who market the best pigs. I may mention that the Advisory Committee on the Marketing of Agricultural Produce in its Report on the Export of Bacon and Other Pigmeat, recommended that sales of pigs by producers direct to factories on a deadweight basis should be encouraged in every possible way.
Is it not a fact that that recommendation was made as part of a number of recommendations and was not to be put into operation where the decision lay with particular individual factories to exploit the producer, as they are at the moment?
That recommendation would have been made quite independently by any body of the nature set up in this case.
Is it not a fact that the committee reported that very strong powers should be made available to a pig and bacon board and that, as a result of setting up such a board, the "deadweight" recommendation was made but that, under the present circumstances, it was not envisaged that this new scheme would be brought into operation by the individual bacon factories who, up to this, claimed there was no collusion or co-operation between them? Is the Minister aware now that the farming community in the west of Ireland have been left in the position that buyers from the particular factories have come to an arrangement——
Is the Deputy asking a question?
——to leave certain fairs to do factories, with the result that there is no competition whatever for the purchase of pigs?
It was always envisaged and desired that every encouragement would be given to producers to produce the type of pig from which the most saleable bacon could be obtained and the committee of investigation to which I have referred, as I say, just as any other intelligent body, would have made this recommendation quite independently of any other recommendation that was contained in their report.