Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

This is something to which I have given quite a bit of thought. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and so forth have given this a lot of consideration at different times. International examples have been monitored at different times too. There is no evidence, in our experience of this or what is happening internationally, to back that up. I accept we need a healthier understanding of and relationships in the food supply chain from food producer to consumer. That relates to the value of food, what is taken and involved in producing it and particularly around the importance of respect for the primary producer. It will be an important role for the new office, especially with products that are produced domestically primarily for the domestic market and in relation to the supply chain protocols and codes of conduct around engagement.

I do not see, nor has anyone shown me, how below-cost selling would actually achieve that. There is undoubtedly work to be done there and it will be an important role for the office to bring about a much more respectful supply chain, particularly for the produce we produce for our own market.