Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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701. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of suckler farmers that are quality assured. [12054/18]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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The scheme which the Deputy refers to is operated by An Bord Bia and is called the Sustainable Beef and Lamb Assurance Scheme (SBLAS). The Quality Assurance Schemes operated by Bord Bia have been developed over a period of years and extend beyond the farm gate as vertical industry integrated schemes. Participation in the schemes is voluntary. The latest iteration of the quality assurance scheme, the Sustainable Beef and Lamb Assurance Scheme, was launched in April 2017.

The scheme was developed partly to address the increasing demand from purchasers of Irish meat products, both nationally and internationally, for proof that Irish meat, including beef, was produced sustainably on farms that were certified members of an accredited Quality Assurance Scheme.

The Bord Bia scheme includes beef and sheepmeat and does not differentiate livestock relating to suckler herds. I understand that at the end of 2017 there were 51,500 farmers accredited to the scheme. Information relating to operational matters can be obtained directly from Bord Bia by mailing them at .