OVER 500 farmers yesterday blockaded the Musgrave distribution centre near Kilcock, Co Kildare over the prices they are receiving for their produce.
Vowing to continue the protest at other retail centres, the farmers said supermarkets were conning consumers and taking huge profits off the backs of Irish farmers.
The Kilcock protest, which the Irish Farmers’ Association said was spontaneous and not organised by it, saw delivery lorries being refused access to the facility. There were no incidents.
Irish Farmers’ Association president Padraig Walshe warned supermarkets that farmers “would not die quietly” and they were not going to take any more cuts in prices for what they produce.
“The supermarket bosses would have consumers believe that reductions are coming from the supermarkets’ own bottom line. They are fooling nobody. The reality is it is off the backs of Irish farmers and farmers’ jobs,” he said.
While he and other speakers stressed Supervalu stores did buy Irish food, the fact remained lamb prices had fallen by 20 per cent last month leaving them with no income and the processors were blaming the supermarkets.
“They talk of price cuts. The fact is you cannot produce two lambs for the price of one and you cannot produce two bullocks for the price of one either,” said Mr Walshe.
He said Supervalu boasted about “real food, real people” but it must now start caring about the real people who produce food.
Dunnes Stores, Mr Walshe said, uses the slogan “the difference is we’re Irish”, yet many of its food products were sourced outside the Republic and across farming there was huge pressure on incomes as a result of the supermarket war between Dunnes, Tesco and Supervalu on their “race to the bottom”.
He called on An Bord Snip Nua to close down the National Consumer Agency and the Competition Authority for failing to do the jobs they were supposed to do, and he called for a ban on below-cost selling of food.
Musgrave said in a statement it was surprised by the protest outside its depot as discussions were ongoing with the Irish Farmers’ Association.
It said that contrary to the view expressed by farmer representatives, its promotional campaign was not funded at the expense of Irish farmers and that Musgrave paid the market rate for all product.
Promotional activity was co-funded by the company and its retail partners, it said.