Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the delegation for its presentation. I will be brief. I wish to raise two questions on pricing and impact on primary and secondary suppliers. Following on from what Senator Pat O'Neill asked, in respect of the statement that the company has invested €290 million to deliver price cuts, I would be interested to hear the breakdown in terms of how much has been carried by the Musgrave Group and how much has been carried by suppliers? In regard to the code of practice, the document states that an unintended consequence of the code of practice could be making sources in the United Kingdom and abroad even more appealing. How appealing is it now and what impact could the code of practice have on it? The document also states that clarity needs to be given to how the benefits of a code will be passed on to producers. Perhaps the witnesses would expand on the clarity needed in respect of the code of practice? Will they also explain why Irish food prices are 18% higher than the EU average? What is the Musgrave Group policy on timely payments to suppliers and ensuring they are paid within a reasonable time? What is the time period for payment within the group?