September 6, 2020

IRA head urges Irish farmers to read full Bord Bia application document on PGI

The head of the Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) urged members to read the full Bord Bia (Irish Food Board) document on PGI (Protected Geographical Indication), which is an EU scheme to protect and promote high-quality traditional and regional food products unique to a geographic area.

An application for PGI status for Irish grass-fed beef has been submitted for consideration by the European Commission, but IFA President Tim Cullinan has claimed that Bord Bia had failed to discuss it with farmers before the document was published.

"Farmers should read the full document rather than the spin from Bord Bia," Cullinan said, adding that the Irish Food Board included a number of aspects in the application that "were not discussed with anybody".

Cullinan, for one, described as disingenuous and inconsistent Bia Bord's statement that commitments that all animals including young bulls would be eligible for the grass-fed "standard" did not mean they would be eligible for the grass-fed "PGI".

"The key issue here is to ensure that farmers see a return from a grass-fed PGI. Remarkably, Bord Bia themselves stated in media interviews that they have no market research to suggest that farmers can get a premium for a grass-fed beef PGI", he said.

IFA National Livestock Chairman Brendan Golden also took issue with animal transport. The document requires that travel time be within two hours to abattoirs, but Bord Bia later clarified that this won't be a requirement. "This is not credible. There should be no reference to travel times anywhere in a document like this", Golden said.

"In addition, they state that animals travel to abattoirs with registered hauliers. What lorry an animal is transported in has nothing do with being grass-fed," he said.

Bord Bia, meanwhile, said that considering the market difficulties arising from COVID-19 and the continued uncertainty in relation to Brexit, "it is more important than ever that the sector utilises every advantage it has to position Irish beef positively in the marketplace".

It said the grass-fed label would be incorporated into Bord Bia's promotional activities for Irish beef from Autumn onwards with the aim of differentiating Irish beef from its competitors and help maximise the returns from the marketplace to the benefit of Irish beef farmers.