Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I met representatives of Bord Bia on Zoom today, with my colleague from the Northern Assembly, Mr. Declan McAleer, MLA. My primary question to Bord Bia, which was not very forthright in giving an answer, was why the scheme was being led by Bord Bia. It is very unusual that a promotion body as opposed to a producer body would lead an application for PGI status.

A second concern is that the potentially very broad nature of the scheme Bord Bia is pursuing could mean that some suckler farmers will not be eligible, whereas other types of beef, which are very good quality but do not have the same natural qualities and saleablity as suckler cattle, will be eligible.

I am very worried that farmers a few miles from me will not be able to participate in the scheme because it is partitionist. It is not an all-island scheme and the Minister, who is also from a Border county, is aware of the importance of promoting the all-Ireland nature of Irish agriculture.

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