Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am not sure it is correct to say that there is a monopoly. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has examined allegations of a monopoly operating among the beef factories. I appreciate that farmers want a decent price for the work they do, but at the same time factories need to make a profit and we also must ensure that consumers pay a reasonable price for their food. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Creed, has established a beef forum which allows him to engage with all parts of the sector and to make progress through that. In addition, the Deputy will be aware of the announcement in the budget of a new scheme to support beef farmers. He will be hearing more about that in the next few weeks.

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