Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 502: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food his views on the difficulties facing farmers who are members of the An Bord Bia scheme but who do not receive the five cent per kg gratuity from the meat factories even though the meat factories receive 40 cent extra per kg from the supermarkets for beef sourced from An Bord Bia member farms; to acknowledge the costs to farmers of meeting An Bord Bia farm standards; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35860/10]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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Most large buyers of Irish beef require that the cuts they purchase are from animals certified under an internationally recognised Quality Assurance Scheme. They also have individual specifications in terms of the type and range of cuts required and these may vary from week to week. The Bord Bia Quality Assurance Scheme is valuable as it provides a recognised and accessible Quality Assurance Scheme for producers and processors. My Department has also provided funding for the initial years of the Scheme for on farm inspection costs, which would normally be borne by producer members of a Quality Assurance Scheme. There is some evidence that product certified under the Scheme is attracting a premium, however, neither my Department nor Bord Bia has a role in setting prices or returns from sales.