As the Irish Farmers Association protests ended yesterday evening at three meatplants, the Anglo Irish Beef Processing company (AIBP) rejected a request for a meeting with it by the IFA president, Mr John Dillon.
In a company statement, the AIBP said it would not enter into any dialogue with Mr Dillon while "his organisations persists in its interference with the operation of our business.
"This includes the picketing of our meat processing facilities and the disruption of the orderly disposal by farmers of their livestock, whereby they feel intimidated by the picketing activity," it said.
"In the meantime, we will as always, be pleased to meet with our local farmer suppliers," concluded the statement which came following talks between the IFA and the Dawn Meats company which led to the withdrawal of the protests from its two plants on Thursday night.
In response to AIBP's statement, Mr Dillon said the confrontation with the AIBP had been precipitated by the Goodman factories' constant downward pressure on cattle prices.
He said the AIBP made profits of €42 million last year and should have been a strong cattle price leader in the current difficult income circumstances in the livestock sector.
Mr Dillon, who was last night meeting his national livestock committee in Portlaoise to review the five week old campaign, said some factories had increased the prices they were paying for certain grades of cattle.
Meanwhile, the Department of Agriculture and Food said there were seven cases of BSE found last week. This brings to 279 the number of animals discovered with the disease so far this year.