GALWAY IFA Chair, Stephen Canavan, has vowed this week that their protest at the Bord Bia Head Office in Dublin will continue for as long as Larry Murrin remains ‘in the chair’.

“It’s as simple as this – there can be no place at the top of Bord Bia for someone who has been involved in the importation of beef from a country like Brazil where controls and checks are practically non-existent.

“Bord Bia is the body responsible for the implementation of the strictest controls and checks on Irish farmers – and then their chairman admits that his company imports beef from Brazil. It’s a completely untenable situation,” said Stephen Canavan.

The Corofin farmer was one of a number of Galway IFA members who joined the association’s protest outside the Bord Bia HQ in Dublin’s Pembroke Street – a number of Mayo farmers took part in Tuesday’s demonstration.

Farming organisations across the country have come together in their calls for Larry Murrin to resign following the revelation earlier this month that his company, Dawn Farms, imports a certain amount of its beef from Brazil.

Agriculture Minister, Martin Heydon, has also shipped heavy criticism for supporting Mr. Murrin with Sinn Fein asking the Minister to step in and remove Mr. Murrin from office.

IFA President Francie Gorman said this week that the position of the Bord Bia Chair, Larry Murrin was untenable, adding that ‘regrettably farmer confidence will continue to ebb away every day he remains in office’.

“What a lot of those outside our sector might not be aware of is that Bord Bia is responsible for the Quality Assurance standards on Irish farms. It is Bord Bia which inspect farms to ensure these standards.

“They constantly tell us that the customers want high standards. Yet now farmers find out that the Chair of Bord Bia is using Brazilian beef, apparently at the behest of these same customers,” said Francie Gorman.

The Beef Plan Movement – which drew attention of the use of Brazilian beef by Dawn Farms – held a meeting this week in Tullamore a bid to co-ordinate a united approach among the farming organisations on the position of Larry Murrin.

The matter came into the public domain after a member of the Beef Plan Movement noticed a sign on a Subway restaurant which stated the following:

“Dawn Farm Foods Ltd certifies that the raw materials used in the production of the beef products supplied to Subway Restaurants in Ireland are currently sourced from EU approved plants in Europe and Brazil.”

Last week, the Minister for Agriculture, Martin Heydon, said that Larry Murrin ‘will continue to serve as chairman of Bord Bia and that he has ‘his full confidence’.

Pictured: Stephen Canavan: Bord Bia protest will continue.