The ending of a Government subsidy for the disposal of meat and bonemeal has the capacity to re-ignite conflict between beef producers and processors and to close meat plants later this month.
An emergency meeting of beef producers has been called by the IFA president, Mr John Dillon, for tomorrow night while the president of the ICMSA, Mr Pat O'Rourke, predicted the industry would close if the Government did not reconsider its decision.
The looming confrontation is all about who pays for the disposal of waste from the beef industry. The Government says the funding mechanism it introduced following the BSE outbreak of 1996 cannot continue under EU rules as it amounts to a national subsidy. Already, it has paid about ¤180 million for the rendering, storage and incineration of this material. And 170,000 tonnes of meat and bonemeal is still in storage, awaiting disposal at the taxpayer's expense. The material is regarded as infectious. In 1989, a prohibition was introduced on feeding meat and bonemeal to cattle. Irish animals born after that time and found to have BSE, are believed to have contracted it from infected foodstuffs intended for the pig and poultry industries.
Three years ago, in order to protect the health of consumers, the Irish Commissioner to the EU, Mr David Byrne, ordered a total ban on its use within agriculture. Since then, some of the material has been exported to Germany for incineration but, because of the cost involved, the bulk of it has gone into storage here. The cost of rendering and disposing of this material amounts to about ¤13 per head for cattle and ¤2 per sheep. The Irish Meat Association, which represents many of the meat export plants, has said farmers will bear the brunt of the cost, following withdrawal of a Government subsidy at the weekend. Farming organisations are seeking a continuation of Government aid or, failing that, an end to the ban on its use as a supplementary foodstuff.
The behaviour of farm leaders on this issue is extraordinary. They know perfectly well that national subsidies are not permitted and that emergency BSE aid granted by other EU countries has been withdrawn. They must also know that feeding this infectious material to other livestock could cause immeasurable harm to consumer confidence. Meat and bonemeal is a potentially dangerous waste material from a profitable industry. Responsibility for disposing of it should lie between those who benefit most, the farmers and the meat factories. The principle: "the polluter pays", is a good one.
Taxpayers have been more than generous.