Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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5. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will report on any progress on the issue of a single label for Irish beef and his negotiations with British retailers regarding the nomad cattle issue. [43098/14]

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister, his Department and Opposition spokespersons have engaged with farming organisations to try to resolve the issue of so-called nomadic cattle. I refer to cattle taken from the South to be processed in the North. Can the Minister outline his negotiations with factories on this? Is there light at the end of the tunnel?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, there is a commercial preference at UK retail level for simple origin labelling bearing the name of a single country of origin only. It must be recognised that this commercial purchasing strategy has facilitated the sale in major UK retail outlets of large quantities of beef from cattle born, reared and slaughtered in Ireland. However, it adversely affects the market for beef from cattle of mixed origin, such as those traditionally exported to Northern Ireland for fattening and slaughter.

I have been pro-active in supporting this traditional trade and have met on a number of occasions with my counterpart in Northern Ireland, Minister Michelle O'Neill, MLA. We have also written jointly to the three UK retailers which currently stock Irish beef - Tesco, Asda and Sainsburys - asking them to consider a new mixed label for animals born, reared or slaughtered in both jurisdictions on the island. Minister O'Neill has also approved a voluntary beef label in Northern Ireland for cattle born in the Republic of Ireland, raised in the Republic and, or, Northern Ireland, and slaughtered in Northern Ireland. This label would facilitate the sale of beef from animals born in the South and slaughtered in the North if retailers were willing to stock the product carrying this label. At this stage, the voluntary label has been approved by the authorities in Northern Ireland but, of course, the question of using such a label is now a commercial matter between processors and retailers in Northern Ireland and elsewhere in the UK.

I will continue to pursue this and other matters with the major retailers. To this end, I invited a representative of Tesco to the last beef roundtable meeting and a very useful exchange of views took place with all of the stakeholders in the sector. I also recently met with Minister O'Neill and the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium, NIRC, in Dublin to explore the labelling issue further. In summary, the NIRC advised me that its members have considered the mixed label issue in some detail and have concluded that for the moment they are not prepared to change their labelling policies. At that meeting both Minister O'Neill and I received a clear message from the retail sector that labelling polices will remain unchanged for the present for a number of reasons including consumer preference and logistical difficulties within the supply chain. However, it was agreed to keep the matter under review and I will continue to engage with the NIRC in this regard.

In terms of live exports to Northern Ireland this year, I confirm for the Deputy that total exports to Northern Ireland from the South are higher in 2014 than in 2013. This is important. Exports in the beef sector are at over 80% of last year's total and have performed very strongly in recent weeks, particularly for finished cattle. In addition, live exports of dairy cattle from the Republic to Northern Ireland in 2014 are higher than in 2013. That said, this is still an issue and we will continue to work on it. Ultimately, I cannot force retailers to stock mixed label of origin beef, as they see it, next to simple, single country of origin label beef while charging the same price if that is not what consumers want. The market is starting to resolve this issue because of supply contraction in terms of the number of cattle being slaughtered.

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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It is clear that live exports have improved in the last number of weeks, which has to do with cost. Perhaps that is a big part of what the IFA has been involved in over the last number of weeks regarding pickets and so forth. It bears testament to how right is the IFA's argument on what one gets for beef in the so-called "UK" or in the North compared to what one gets down here.

My recollection is that because there was such a collective effort and everyone was on the same wavelength on a resolution of this issue, an unnecessary intervention by the CEO of Dawn Meats put a spanner in the works. My understanding is that Tesco was very favourably disposed to an all-island label as was being proposed. That intervention was timed to put a spanner in the works and it did so. This comes back to the argument on the power of the beef barons over retailers as well as producers and the fact that they are working collectively together. I know the Minister does not like me using the word "cartel" but nothing will convince me that there is not a cartel operating to ensure that the supply is at their given price and not what is for the benefit of the producer.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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It is important to record that certainly from my experience at any rate there was no intervention of any substance from a CEO of any processing company here.

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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There was.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Not that affected the discussion on this. I have had repeated discussions with Tesco on this issue. I have had Tesco representatives in my Department where we have had long meetings on this and other issues. We had a meeting with the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium whose representatives made it very clear that it was its members who decided, for the moment anyway, that because they could access meat with a clear country of origin of either Ireland or Britain, that was their preference. It has nothing to do with Dawn Meats or anyone else so let us not try to create problems where the evidence suggests they do not exist.

I am not an apologist or defender of the processing sector or factories. They are big boys who can stand up for themselves. My job primarily is to look after the primary producer. I am the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and that is what I do. However, I am also interested in telling people the truth and the truth in respect of this issue is that when there is a lot of beef around, as there has been with 15% more beef produced in 2014 than in 2013, and consumption is down, as it has been for most of the year albeit it is improving, retailers will choose high quality meat that has a clear label on country of origin rather than having to choose mixed origin label beef. That is notwithstanding the fact that mixed origin label beef is very good quality also. That has been the source of the problem. As supply contracts somewhat, the Deputy might see a change of heart from retailers.

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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I would very much like to see a change of heart from retailers. I would also like to see them give the price that has been well earned and which should be respected to the producer. At the end of the line, the producer - the farmer - is the person who is absolutely hostage to the retailers and the beef barons. From my own knowledge of being tied into the farming organisations and individual farmers, they are being held to ransom by a cartel among the beef barons. They are the ones who determine the price and put pressure on retailers regarding a so-called mixed label between bullocks from different countries. It is absolutely madness. I welcome the fact that the Minister and Michelle O'Neill, MLA are trying to resolve the issue, but everybody in the House knows the beef industry has data access on every calf born in the State.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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It does not.

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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Illegally maybe, but it has access. Everybody, including the farming organisations, knows that. The only party that does not seem to know is the Government.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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We have looked into that accusation and put systems in place to ensure factories do not have access to inappropriate information.

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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Legally, yes.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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With all due respect, if we are going to make accusations, we need to have evidence to back them up. I am not saying it has not been a difficult year for beef farmers, it has. That is why I have been involved intensively throughout the summer with farming organisations and factories to try to change the structure of the sector. There has been a fractious and difficult relationship between farmers and factories for as long as I can remember because farmers want more money for very high quality produce while factories operate in a price competitive environment. We are trying to redesign the relationship between farmers and factories through negotiation and discussion in a beef forum as opposed to megaphone diplomacy which has failed to change anything. That is why we come back to protest after protest whereas the beef forum can function if all stakeholders work with it.

The bargaining power of farmers will increase significantly through producer organisations, which we discussed earlier. In the meantime, we will discuss and try to resolve this evening at the beef forum a whole series of grievances which farmers rightly have. That follows two weeks of very intensive negotiation chaired by Mr. Michael Dowling. Let us focus on the issues we know we can resolve rather than to raise issues which have been doing the rounds for many years.