Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware, the Unfair Trading Practices Enforcement Authority (EA) recently commissioned a market research company to conduct a survey of farmers and fishers to establish baseline information on the following issues –

- awareness of the UTP Regulations and of the EA itself;

- supplier understanding of the protections afforded to them under the UTP Regulations; and

- the extent to which UTPs impact suppliers and the factors which influence them in deciding whether or not to make a complaint.

I am pleased to say that there was a significant response from farmers and fishers with 3,213 respondents taking the time to complete the survey and I want to thank all those who engaged with the survey.

At the same time as the online survey, a targeted phone survey was conducted of 200 supplier businesses that operate downstream of farmers and fishers, with the phone survey covering the same thematic areas as the online questionnaire.

The surveys represented a valuable opportunity for primary producers and businesses to inform the Enforcement Authority in confidence of any UTP-related issues they are facing and whether the buyers that they supply are treating them fairly and lawfully in compliance with the UTP Regulations. The high-level survey findings will be presented at an event planned for early May.

Further information of the event including registration details will be available shortly on www.utp.gov.ie.