Consumers are always right and it is important that they have confidence in the beef product. Red meat is very important in our diet because of its high protein level and it is essential that the quality is of the highest standard.
Some years ago under the Abattoirs Act we got rid of the small village butcher. We wanted to improve the quality of meat and ensure higher standards of hygiene but in doing so we handed the business over to the large processors and got rid of the village butcher who sold good quality fresh meat with a good flavour. If the flavour is not right, then the meat is not right. I urge the Minister to look again at the Abbatoirs Act. I am aware of what is proposed in EU directives but Spain and England did not implement the directive in this area in its totality. A report in a UK newspaper stated that that country got a derogation from that directive. The village butcher was very concerned about his consumers with whom he had a more personal relationship than the large processor. He was only interested in killing the best animals and selling the highest quality product.
In addition to the changes which have taken place on the European front, many changes on the home scene in recent years have helped destroy the quality of our beef. I sympathise with the Minister of State who is doing a good job. He has been sent in on many occasions to save the day for the Government. I am not praising him because I am friendly with him but because I admire him for the good job he is doing. I do not know how long he will be in this position but I will not try to destroy him while he is there.
Feed compounders in Europe must list the ingredients used by them either on the packaging or the invoice. It is very important that the ingredients of the food given to ruminant animals are known and that there is greater contact between the consumer, processor and primary producer. It is not unknown for consumer representatives to visit producers' premises. For example, suppliers in the South regularly bring the representatives of a large Northern multiple to the farms where the animals come from so that they can see for themselves what kind of product they are selling to their customers. We cannot ignore this trend which is the only way of restoring confidence in the product and increasing consumption to its original level.
It is also necessary to reduce the age profile so that animals are slaughtered when they are younger. The days when 12-year-old or culled cows were slaughtered are long past and we are now entering an era when cattle of little more than two years will be slaughtered. This will ensure a better and higher quality product which is more consumer-oriented. The Department must work progressively in that direction. In other countries the ingredients used in feed compounds are listed on the packaging or invoice and I do not understand the resistance by producers here to doing this. By listing the ingredients people know what was fed to the cattle which were slaughtered. I ask the Minister to use his influence to ensure that this is done here.
Farm examinations will become a reality as consumers become more interested in what is happening. Marks & Spencer, one of the flagships of the UK retailing industry, buys its beef from a corps of suppliers and knows the farms from which it comes. I understand that Tesco, Sainbury's and Safeways, the other three major multiples in the UK, operate on a similar basis. It must be remembered that the UK, which has a market of 57-60 million people and is on our doorstep, is not self-sufficient in food. We will be subject to similar scrutiny. While the perception is that all Irish beef is grass fed, this is not altogether true.
Because of seasonality and difficult winters we are dependent on other feedstuffs. Identification and the source of the feed is vitally important. The only people who can provide such identification are the feed compounders. We are entering a new scene. If we are to gain consumer confidence as an export oriented country, exporting practically all we produce in the beef area, we will have to adhere to strict rules and disciplines and adopt an open approach to the business. I have referred to the four largest multiples in the UK, one of which already has such disciplines while the other three are working towards putting them in place. Many of our large Irish food processors are exporting to the UK and supplying those multiples. If we do not gain consumer confidence and if the Department does not give leadership Irish farming is doomed.
I wish An Bord Bia every success. It must be seen to be a consumer-oriented organisation. All organisations involved in the promotion of food products will have to change their direction. There will have to be greater emphasis on promotion rather than on marketing. We have been advised that in the European context there will be larger groupings in the food area. Promotion rather than centralised marketing is the answer. There is a strong case for the ingredients of animal feedstuffs to be made known to the multiple which buys the product so that the consumer can be informed where it came from. In that way we will gain consumer confidence and our food industry will become the envy of the world. As an island country we have lost much in the past ten or 11 years because of our liberal approach. We failed to protect what we had but we have learnt our lesson. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry has a major role to play in giving leadership and regaining our position. We could be the food flagship of the western world.