The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) has written to Bord Bia to outline its concerns in relation to a revamp of the Origin Green quality assurance (QA) standards.
The farm organisation has said that it is seeking clarification on certain issues before discussions on the draft proposals can continue.
It is understood that these issues relate to potential additional paperwork for farm audits.
Producer standard
Bord Bia is currently developing a new producer standard which will “replace” the current farm standards for beef, sheep and dairy into one “consolidated standard”.
The new producer standard, which is due to be rolled out this year, is being discussed with specially-appointed Technical Advisory Committees (TAC).
This committees include representatives from the industry, Bord Bia, farm organisations, Teagasc, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI), the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine (DAFM) and other technical experts.
Declan Hanrahan, chair of the IFA National Livestock Committee, told Agriland that the farm organisation has “identified key issues that need to be addressed before the process can move on”.
“Our number one aim from day one is to have a simple process that is more user friendly,” he said.
Hanrahan stressed that the IFA has not walked away from the negotiations but is awaiting a reply from Bord Bia.
He said that the IFA is aiming to “streamline audits” to make them “more farmer friendly”, adding that “everything is being worked through in detail”.
While the IFA appreciates the work of Bord Bia in marketing Irish beef, Hanrahan said that more cannot be asked of farmers in terms of QA compliance.
He said that a certain cohort of farmers, including those in the Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP), are required to be members of the Sustainable Beef and Lamb Assurance Scheme (SBLAS).
A spokesperson for Bord Bia confirmed to Agriland that “the July meeting of the Dairy and Beef TAC has been postponed for further engagement with stakeholders on specific issues”.
“We expect the TAC to proceed as usual thereafter,” they said.
“The exact criteria and recommendations of the new standard are still at a draft stage, and subject to approval, as well as testing on farm.
“Bord Bia will communicate any relevant updates directly to our farmer members with substantial notice,” the spokesperson added.
Bord Bia
Bord Bia first indicated in early 2022 that it planned to overhaul Origin Green, aiming to put a greater focus on sustainability.
It said that the rationale for this new producer standard is to improve the efficiency of the standard development process in Bord Bia.
It added that the benefits to this new approach include more consistent auditing, less overall time required in the updating of standards, enhanced cross species reporting, and improved benchmarking against international standards.
Once agreed upon, the producer standard will then be updated on a four-year cycle basis.