Farmers are to stage overnight protests starting on Sunday at the six factories controlled by the Larry Goodman-controlled AIBP group, the president of the Irish Farmers Association, Mr John Dillon announced last night.
In a carefully worded statement, the IFA leader said the farmer protests were being held in response to the meat factories' cattle price cuts this week. The six plants which have been targeted are in Nenagh and Cahir, Co Tipperary; Bandon, Co Cork; Waterford; Rathkeale, Co Limerick, and Clones, Co Monaghan.
In January 2000, an IFA picket on meat plants became a blockade and the industry was closed down for almost a month. However, the Irish Meat Industry, which represents meat plant owners, pursued the IFA through the courts and the High Court imposed fines of £100,000 a day on the organisation, which resulted in fines of £500,000 and almost half of that again in legal fees.
The entire officer board of the IFA resigned to protect the organisation and the courts were moving to fine individuals when the issue, involving a claim for 90p a lb for beef, was resolved.
Asked last night if the protest was an official IFA-organised action, a spokesman said: "We are endorsing and supporting it."
Mr Dillon's statement said the final straw was this week's cut by the factories in the week that the Russian market was reopened. He had accused the meat factories of driving down cattle prices, saying that over the last 10 weeks, factories had cut beef prices paid to farmers by 25c a kg or 9p a lb, amounting to €84 a head.
Mr Dillon, the statement continued, said these "farmer protests" were the first steps in a protest campaign against cattle-price manipulation by the factories and farmers were determined to demonstrate their dissatisfaction over actions which were destroying their livelihoods.