Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Question 388: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food the amount of meat which is being sold through the UK market; the percentage of this which goes directly to the retail trade; if she has satisfied herself that enough effort is being made to establish quality Irish beef in that market in order that Ireland can retain its share when the UK destruction scheme ends; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12208/05]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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Irish beef exports to the UK have increased from less than 100,000 tonnes in 1999 to levels consistently over 250,000 tonnes since 2002. This represents over half of total Irish beef exports. Irish beef has increased its visibility on supermarket shelves through the launch of the Irish beef logo in 2001. That was enhanced by consumer promotions implemented by Bord Bia in the UK in co-operation with Irish exporters. Irish beef penetration of British supermarkets, the most valuable volume outlet, has risen strongly in the past four years, with Irish beef currently enjoying a UK market share of over 20%.

Bord Bia's market strategy for Britain, in response to the proposed reintroduction of over-30-month beef in the UK, has been to maximise the returns from the market by maintaining Irish beef's high-profile position in the retail and manufacturing sectors. An awareness-building campaign, which involved a recipe calendar, enjoyed a huge consumer response last year. Almost 500,000 individual consumers purchased the 2005 Irish beef recipe calendar. The highly sought-after calendar, which is now found on kitchen work tops the length and breadth of Britain, is inspiring customers to cook with beef and highlights the nutritional and quality aspects of Irish beef. In the premium restaurant sector, the chef's Irish beef club is promoting the quality, taste and integrity of Irish beef to Michelin starred chefs.

In anticipation of the ending of the over-30-month scheme in the UK, Bord Bia has been implementing a strategy of assisting the further development of continental markets. The increasing demand for beef in Europe and the increased promotional effort has seen Irish exports to all main continental markets increase in 2004. This autumn will see a further major promotional effort across European retailers for Irish beef, which will target 45 multiple retail groups in 12 European countries.