June 24, 2011

 

Ireland to face difficulty in meeting beef demand

 

 

Ireland will find it tough to generate enough high quality beef to fulfill increasing foreign demand in the coming years, predicted Bord Bia chief executive Aidan Cotter.

 

Speaking at the IFA's annual beef conference in Tullamore, Co Offaly, Cotter said that Bord Bia is finding that quality markets such as Germany are already looking to buy more Irish beef than is currently available. With the government-appointed Beef Action Group revising upward its 2020 beef production increasing from 20% to 40%, the sector will also have to be careful to maintain its focus on higher beef quality than its competitors.

 

Cotter said, "The challenge with having a well-earned reputation for quality product is that we will have to manage demand across the marketplace. Our customers simply cannot get enough Irish beef.

 

"The challenge is scarcity. Germany imported 400,000 tonnes of beef last year. Only 7,000 tonnes of this was Irish beef. The Irish market produced 1,500 less animals last year. The German market imported 1,500 head less from Ireland.

 

"Michael Dowling (chairman of the Food Harvest 2020 Beef Group) spoke about the export potential for Irish beef, and the 75 high end retailers and leading chefs in Holland, Belgium and France who are promoting our beef. He is right. We have a great quality product."

 

Cotter cited blind taste tests in Italy, Germany and Holland in which Irish product was consistently named the best tasting product. He cited progress with plans for Brand Ireland and the advent of further EU sustainability measures as other factors which will add to Ireland's quality advantage.

 

However, Cotter's views on the need to maintain high quality standards in beef production were echoed by other industry speakers in Tullamore. These included Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney, Meat Industry Ireland chairman Ciaran Fitzgerald, Sean O'Sullivan of Cork Marts and Rory Fanning of Slaney Meats.

 

A number of farmers attending the event said they had moved into producing weanlings for export to ensure higher profits. They cited the high take going to retailers and criticised the meat factories for failing to deliver a higher price.

 

Speaking for the meat processing sector, Fitzgerald said, "The dominance of the retail buying power will continue to be a problem for the sector. It is incredible that even in a downturn the only person still making a clear profit from meat is the retailer."

 

Cotter said that the deficit in quality Irish beef product was likely to grow. Any Mercosur deal is unlikely in the next few years, which will push up demand for Irish product and consequently price.

 

However, all of the top table speakers expressed concerns that the beef sector needed to be cautious not to let quality standards slip.

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