A Kilkenny pork processing company at the centre of a row with pig farmers said yesterday it had never imported pork from Europe and sold it as Irish.
Senior managers at Callan Bacon met a group of 100 farmers who are accusing the processors of importing large amounts of pork while the Irish industry was losing €1 million a week.
A statement issued by the Irish Farmers Association after the meeting said the company had given a commitment to significantly increase the quantities of Irish, quality-assured pigmeat in the future.
Michael Maguire of the IFA's pig committee said the company had also said it would introduce three new brand lines that would carry the Bord Bia quality assurance logo, but a company spokesman said the new developments would be subject to consumer demand.
In a formal statement, the company said it did not and never had imported bacon from Europe and sold it as Irish and any such statements were incorrect and misleading to the public. It said it purchased Irish pork to process into bacon products.
"The demand for certain cuts in Ireland exceeds the supply and therefore some of these cuts must be imported," it said.
"While Callan Bacon Company Ltd sources all the pork possible from Irish factories it imports some pork to meet the shortfall from other European pork producers who operate under the same European health rules as Irish producers.
"This is normal within the Irish industry and is common to all processors."
Mr Maguire said the IFA would be monitoring progress on the pledges made by the company.
Earlier, Mr Maguire had accused Irish secondary processors that trade under Irish names while processing substantial quantities of imported pigmeat, of undermining Irish pig producers who were losing €1 million a week.