IFA President Joe Healy confirmed that IFA would consider their next move in its beef price campaign at tomorrow’s National Council meeting.
“We have delivered a strong message to the five major retailers and to Minister Creed at our meeting today. There must be a beef price increase and the Minister must immediately call in the processors and the retailers to drive home that message,” he said.
He was speaking at the conclusion of the latest IFA retail protest outside Dunnes Stores in Cornelscourt, which lasted 30 hours. Prior to this IFA had blockaded the Central Distribution Centres belonging to Aldi, Lidl, Tesco and Musgraves.
His comments come on foot of a story in today’s Irish Farmers Journal which showed that retailers are engaged in excessive profiteering on beef and other meat products at a time when farm gate prices are on the floor and farmers are incurring serious losses. The analysis shows that supermarkets can earn gross profit margins of between 20% and 45% on fresh meat.
“Farmers are angry that Irish beef price lags behind the Bord Bia Export Benchmark Price by over 20c/kg, and behind the UK price by 50c/kg. This is unsustainable and the Minister needs to get on the pitch to tell the processors and the retailers that this cannot continue,” he said.
