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Beef Industry

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 October 2019

Tuesday, 15 October 2019

Ceisteanna (55)

Brian Stanley

Ceist:

55. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of the implementation of the Irish beef sector agreement of 15 September 2019. [41607/19]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí ó Béal (9 píosaí cainte)

What is the status of the implementation of the Irish beef sector agreement of 15 September? There was an agreement reached and it is important that it be implemented. The summary the Minister sent out includes clear lists of actions to be taken, most of which are very welcome. It is important to try to get confidence back into the sector.

There have been a series of formal negotiations with beef sector stakeholders, facilitated by my Department, since early August, culminating in an agreement being reached between stakeholders on Sunday, 15 September. The full text of the agreement is available on my Department's website.

The agreement involves a number of interventions which will provide immediate benefit for beef producers, as well as a range of strategic measures which seek to address structural imbalances in the sector.

Beef producers will benefit from an immediate increase in a range of bonuses. This will increase the level of bonus being paid on certain animals, as well as significantly increasing the number of animals eligible for bonuses. The cumulative effect is that over 70% of all steer and heifers slaughtered will now be eligible for a bonus on top of the base price paid.

A number of actions in the area of market transparency, beef promotion and strengthening the position of the farmer in the supply chain are included in the agreement. These measures set a course towards greater clarity for all stakeholders involved in the beef supply chain primarily.

My Department is also proactively engaging with several potential beef producer organisations, which have to potential to strengthen the bargaining power of beef farmers in the supply chain. Two beef producer organisations have been formally recognised by my Department in recent weeks.

I have established a beef market task force to provide the leadership to develop a sustainable pathway for the future of the beef sector in terms of economic, environmental and social sustainability. The task force will provide a robust implementation structure for commitments entered into in the agreement, with timelines and stakeholder engagement. Furthermore, the beef market task force will offer a suitable platform for strategic engagement with key stakeholders, including retailers and regulatory authorities.

I have appointed Michael Dowling as independent chair of the task force, the membership of which includes representatives from my Department, relevant State agencies, farm organisations and the meat industry.

The beef task force meeting scheduled for yesterday, 14 October, was adjourned as members of the task force were prevented from attending the meeting. It is in the interests of everyone involved in the beef industry that the work of the task force goes ahead. The task force’s remit is to monitor the implementation of the actions arising from the agreement reached on 15 September and offers the most viable platform for strategic engagement with key stakeholders. It was a great pity that farm representatives were not in a position to air the legitimate concerns of farmers at the task force.

It has been just over one month since the signing of the beef sector agreement. It is unacceptable that there is an issue in regard to the outstanding legal injunctions against farmers. Was the Government naive to believe that the task force would meet successfully yesterday while the basic promises regarding the lifting of injunctions were not kept? The task force needs to meet, of that there is no doubt, and it is the place to sort out these issues. However, there is an outstanding issue in regard to the injunctions.

Will the Minister call on the processors, including C&D Foods, which is owned by the ABP Food Group, to drop all injunctions? While it says it is not party to the talks, and I am not trying to say it is, it is linked to a company that was party to the talks because it is part of ABP. Considering this is a sector in which there are serious issues of trust between farmers and processors, what does it say if one of the processors will not comply with such a basic part of the agreement? All disputes need to be resolved.

It was also agreed that Bord Bia would develop beef market index models. Will the Minister update us on the progress in that regard?

The talks process involved a large number of farm organisations and representatives of the meat industry, which was represented by Meat Industry Ireland, MII, in the negotiations which were brokered by myself and Department officials. C&D Foods was not a party to those negotiations, and that is the simple fact of the matter. We been assured by MII that all of the injunctions to which its constituent members are a party have been, or are in the process of being, stood down, and it is very anxious that this is acknowledged as the situation. We did not negotiate an agreement with C&D Foods and there are no farmers selling cattle to C&D Foods. Therefore, to expect that the agreement between the farm representatives and MII can have a reach beyond those represented in the room is not reasonable by any stretch of the imagination. I would like it if we had a situation where those were stood down. However, the pursuit of that has to be within acceptable norms of engagement, and not with the kind of intimidatory tactics that were adopted outside the Department yesterday, which I do not think anybody in this Chamber would condone.

While C&D Foods was not party to the negotiations, and I understand that, the ABP Food Group has influence with C&D Foods because they are related companies. Will the Minister lift the phone to the CEO of ABP to ask it to get that injunction lifted? I agree with the Minister that the talks need to happen and that is the place to sort it out. It is important to accept that all disputes are sorted out by negotiation. However, there was a commitment in that agreement back in September that all legal proceedings would be lifted and withdrawn. The Minister might answer the question on Bord Bia developing the market price index because it is important.

The agreement dealt with very basic demands. The vast majority of farmers accepted the deal in good faith but the Department has failed so far to deal with the issue of the injunctions. Will the Minister pick up the phone and ask the CEO of ABP to use its influence to have them lifted? It is taking offal from that company and it is a related company with huge influence, so it is important that this is done. We need to get the talks back up and running; that is the key issue. We need to get people around the table to resolve the issues.

I would like to see the task force up and running. It is the forum where all the issues can be raised and it is entirely regrettable that that was not enabled by the actions of a minority of people who stepped clearly outside the normal parameters of engagement yesterday. That is something I think all right-minded people would condemn and I hope that is a position Deputy Stanley shares in terms of the appropriate prosecution of what might be legitimate points of view.

I am not aware of the ownership structure of C&D Foods and how that relates to ABP, Mr. Goodman or anybody else, but I am aware of the injunctions that exist. As I said, we have engaged in my Department in an effort to dismantle that but it has to be acknowledged that it is a legal entity outside of the remit of MII. My Department does not have the leverage that has been alleged in order to be able to wave these away. That is an issue for the company itself.

Has C&D Foods been contacted directly?

I have not contacted C&D Foods directly. The Deputy asked me did I contact ABP and the answer is "Yes".

We will now return to Question No. 54.

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