Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Jennings in Ballinrobe and Dunleavy Meats outside Ballina both provide good work. There were no blockades at their factory gates. They are not the problem. There is a structural problem in the whole meat industry. These people are just trying to run a business, and while they are small players in the industry, they provide valuable employment in their local areas. Many farmers were glad to be able to go to them to get their animals slaughtered during the recent pickets. I do not think generalised statements help at all. We should have more considered debates, given all the rhetoric I hear about inflammatory types of speech that do not help anybody. There are similar family meat processing plants around the country that can stand over their situations.