There has been a call for the Chair of the Irish Food Board, Bord Bia, Larry Murrin to appear before the Dail’s Agricultural Committee following revelations that a company headed up by him sourced beef from one of the Mercosur countries.
Dawn Farms, one of Ireland’s largest meat suppliers, and whose CEO is Larry Murrin ,is in the spotlight following the news that it sourced Brazilian beef.
Aontú Senator Sarah O’Reilly says:
“ This is truly staggering and utterly unacceptable. We have to remember that Bord Bia is tasked with promoting IRISH beef and here we have its Chair heading up a company that is sourcing Brazilian beef.
It’s very hard to get one’s head around this. Surely there is a massive conflict of interest here.
The Irish public expects Bord Bia, as the national food board and a semi state agency , to set a standard of unwavering commitment to homegrown products. When its leadership is linked to actions that directly contradict this purpose, it not only sends mixed signals to consumers but also endangers the credibility of our entire food system.
Irish farmers are currently doing their utmost to block the hugely contentious Mercosur Trade Deal and fighting for their very survival. They are hanging on by their very fingertips .
This news is hardly going to inspire them with confidence.
The Agricultural Committee in the Dáil has a duty to ensure that Mr. Murrin appears before it .There has to be accountability around this very serious mis step and he simply has to explain it .
