Danny Healy-Rae: Calls for accountability over Brazilian beef
Danny Healy-Rae warned of failures in food inspections and traceability after alleging Brazilian beef entered the Irish supply chain. He told farmers he is deeply concerned about inspection standards, TB testing and uninspected meat, and said an implicated individual "will have to go" as he prepares to vote on the agricultural committee the next day.
Farmers' anxieties
He addressed farmers from around the country, saying they are anxious and upset. He spoke from his own experience as a farmer about the stress of inspections - TB tests, Bord B inspections and sudden spot checks - and how small administrative faults such as a missing tag can cost approvals.
Inspection and traceability concerns
He questioned claims that a product could be labelled 99% Irish and 1% Brazilian, asking whether Irish beef could be contaminated by uninspected meat. He warned the country's traceability and standards are being jeopardised and used the analogy that "one bad apple will ruin the pack" and that it feels like "the fox minding the chickens."
Allegations about an individual's history
He said his investigations indicated the individual at the centre of the episode had been involved in the matter over 20 years ago, alleging movements of beef "from Nace down to Middleton to put it into cold storage" related to the same Brazilian beef. He questioned how that person was appointed to their current important position.
Committee decision pending
He said he is a member of the agricultural committee and is proud of the work done there, but that members face a heavy responsibility to listen and account for what has happened. He stated he will make up his mind and vote on the matter tomorrow, representing farmers including those from Kerry and surrounding areas.
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Look, all the farmers around the country, you're very welcome here tonight. And I know that you're all very anxious and upset for the last number of weeks. And it's not fair what has happened. And we know that the same standards don't apply in Brazil as apply here. And as a farmer, myself and my young fellas as well, we know what inspections are like. We're worried about the TB test. We're worried about the Board B inspections. And then you can have an inspection out of the blue. And we know what it means to be on the right side and to have everything in the right place. If we have a tag missing, if we drive off a tractor once, half only or whatever, you won't get your approval. And it seems very wrong to me that TARDIS can be put into a restaurant or whatever it was and state that there's 99% Irish beef in it and 1% Brazilian beef. The first question arises there, is our Irish beef contaminated by that 1% that went through no inspection and landed here into the food chain? I know that all of you, like myself, go to funerals evening after evening and many people die of old age. Many people die from accidents. They die from different things. But cancer is the dominant thing that people are dying from and we don't know what causes it. But we have our path done here in this country to ensure that we have good food and that we're to the highest standard possible. And I'm afraid that we're losing that traceability and that expertise that we had. But we always heard that one bad apple will ruin the pack. And it looks to me like that we have and had the fox minding the chickens. And look, when people go to court, we always heard that the judge and the jury have their mind, we'll say 50 or 60% made up whether the laddie be convicted or not. Well, I'm fairly sure that all the people that I'm talking to and have talked to, like many of the people up there, they're saying that this man will have to go. And I will decide finally, I'm a member of that committee tomorrow. And I'm proud to be a member of the agricultural committee because there's great workers in it. And we believe we're doing a great job. And we want to continue doing that. But we have a very important positions to take and decisions to make tomorrow. And we'll finally make those. But I'm very hot at what has happened for the people that I represent, for the people that I love going into their yards and to talk about inspections and to talk about all the different things in farming, whether it is the weather or the price of animals or whatever it is. But I want to be able to do that and to face the farmers head on anytime because I came up here to do my best for them as I do for all the other sectors of people that I'm proud to represent from the county of Kerry. And I will make up my mind finally tomorrow. But like I said, this is a very worrying thing. The good work that we've had about our practice and what we've been monitoring it, that's all been jeopardized by this episode. And from what investigations I've done and carried out, it has been made known to me that this particular individual was at this over 20 years ago. And from 20 years down along and taking beef from Nace down to Middleton to put it into cold storage, the same beef that we're talking about, Brazilian beef. And I'm seriously concerned to know that, first of all, that he was appointed to such an important position as he is fulfilling at the minute. And I, like all the other members, I'm very concerned about it. There's a big onus on our shoulders tomorrow to listen and to account for everything that's said and gone on in there. And I wouldn't be anywhere else in the world to ensure to whatever role that I play, to be on behalf of the farmers up there, the farmers around the country, and especially the farmers from Kerry, from Slayhead, all the way over to the Cot County Bound, and I'll be doing that tomorrow. Thank you very much. Thank you very much, Debri. Thank you very much. Thank you very much.
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