Beef farmers will be forced to introduce new feeding and breeding practices to cope with the realities of the BSE crisis, a conference in Kilkenny heard yesterday.
One cattle trade representative called for an EU- wide levy on milk to compensate beef farmers.
Mr Charlie Reilly, national chairman of the Irish Cattle Traders' and Stockowners' Association, said a restoration of both consumer and producer confidence was needed.
Mr Reilly, who represents 7,000 beef and sheep producers, told the a.g.m. that BSE in the Irish context was not a disease of beef production but a hangover from practices in the dairy sector before 1996.
He was calling on the EU to place a levy on every gallon of milk produced across Europe to compensate beef farmers who, through no fault of their own, had been heavily hit.
Mr Reilly said beef producers would be forced to have their cattle ready for slaughter before 30 months of age and this would mean changing both feeding and breeding methods.
"We also need a marketing programme to drag our product up from the floor. I am sick of listening to what a second-rate product we have. BSE demonstrated that we have much to be proud of if only we have the will to stand over our product."
Mr Reilly said the quality assurance schemes for meat had not delivered a better price to producers or convinced consumers here or abroad.
"They failed to the extent that our very own Minister for Food found it more profitable to stay out of the Galtee pig-meat quality assurance scheme and feed meat and bone-meal instead."
The issue was not whether Mr Ned O'Keeffe did anything wrong, he said; it was that there must be equal treatment.