Bord Bia

foundation10 · 22-09-2019 12:54pm #1

The past few weeks has focused the spotlight on Bord Bia’s shortcomings. I wanted to get a better understanding on the workings of this organisation and tried to get access to the 2018 annual report which hasn’t been make publicly available yet (I cannot understand why this is not available at this stage) so I had to rely on the 2017 report for the following information.
The 2017 annual report shows Bord Bia received funding of over €52M from the government to promote our produce an increase of about €9M compared to previous year. In addition other sources of income amounted to €20M. Of this €43M was spent on marketing and promotions and €6M on QA schemes. There isn’t any breakdown on how this is spent by sector. Staff costs amount to €13.8M for 2017 with the average number of employees being 114 showing the average staff cost per employee of €121K, this has increased from an average cost in 2016 of €106k.
Beef and live exports account for over 20% of total exports of food and drink for 2017.

I think we need to get more detail on what % of Bord Bia’s budget is being spent on the promotion of beef and live exports and what % of staff resources are being allocated to this sector. We need a value for money exercise completed for this organisation given the size of its budget and the critical importance of marketing and promotion of our product is. Its future strategy will also need independent monitoring. There may be a case the promotion of Irish beef be given over to a standalone organisation. It doesn't appear resources are the issue with Bord Bia as there has been increased exchequer funding to the figures quoted above in respect of 2018 & 2019.

Hurling Hereford · 22-09-2019 4:46pm

foundation10 wrote: »

The past few weeks has focused the spotlight on Bord Bia’s shortcomings. I wanted to get a better understanding on the workings of this organisation and tried to get access to the 2018 annual report which hasn’t been make publicly available yet (I cannot understand why this is not available at this stage) so I had to rely on the 2017 report for the following information.
The 2017 annual report shows Bord Bia received funding of over €52M from the government to promote our produce an increase of about €9M compared to previous year. In addition other sources of income amounted to €20M. Of this €43M was spent on marketing and promotions and €6M on QA schemes. There isn’t any breakdown on how this is spent by sector. Staff costs amount to €13.8M for 2017 with the average number of employees being 114 showing the average staff cost per employee of €121K, this has increased from an average cost in 2016 of €106k.
Beef and live exports account for over 20% of total exports of food and drink for 2017.

I think we need to get more detail on what % of Bord Bia’s budget is being spent on the promotion of beef and live exports and what % of staff resources are being allocated to this sector. We need a value for money exercise completed for this organisation given the size of its budget and the critical importance of marketing and promotion of our product is. Its future strategy will also need independent monitoring. There may be a case the promotion of Irish beef be given over to a standalone organisation. It doesn't appear resources are the issue with Bord Bia as there has been increased exchequer funding to the figures quoted above in respect of 2018 & 2019.

They're also in line for a 'little windfall' from the Beef Exceptional Aid Measure, that closed on Friday.

To be eligible for BEAM a farmer must either be a member of a Bord Bia Quality Assurance Scheme or a DAFM environmental scheme. It is proposed that GLAS BDGP,BEEP,OFS will all qualify as suitable environmental schemes.

Where the farmer is not a member of at least one environmental or quality scheme at the time of application, they must undertake to become a member of a quality scheme i.e. prior to 1st December 2019

cute geoge · 22-09-2019 5:11pm

What are farmers gaining by being qa ,bord bia have just claimed the bonus paid on cattle is an inspec bonus and nothing to do with bord bia
https://www.farmersjournal.ie/mccarthy-clarifies-confusion-around-quality-assurance-496321

K.G. · 22-09-2019 5:23pm

Without doubt the most important organisation is Irish agriculture and things id be alot worse without them

White Clover · 22-09-2019 5:52pm

K.G. wrote: »

Without doubt the most important organisation is Irish agriculture and things id be alot worse without them

Perhaps......but, When you break it down, they're not great at what they're supposed to be doing. Cull cows have been the most in demand animals, cull cows = mince.
They spend a good chunk of our money marketing our beef with not much to show for it.
Ffs, mince would sell itself.

wrangler · 22-09-2019 6:41pm

White Clover wrote: »

Perhaps......but, When you break it down, they're not great at what they're supposed to be doing. Cull cows have been the most in demand animals, cull cows = mince.
They spend a good chunk of our money marketing our beef with not much to show for it.
Ffs, mince would sell itself.

And they're different than any other public service ....... how.
There's 35000 cattle going somewhere, someone must be promoting beef,
This is more of Beef Plan.......they thought that is was no problem to sell beef too, that worked out well too didn't it.
All anyone can do is attend food fairs, , hold food fair, entertain prospective buyers, run advertising and promotions, it's probably not rocket science.
A farm organisation running down a major proportion of our beef on social media is no help to them.
That budget you're looking at has to promote food, drink, and horticulture.

Never wrestle with pigs · 22-09-2019 6:42pm

Ya they are great, no conflict of interest or anything like that, ðŸ™„

wrangler · 22-09-2019 6:53pm

Never wrestle with pigs wrote: »

Ya they are great, no conflict of interest or anything like that, &#55357;&#56900;

Who would you put on.....ould farmers.
There's a huge cross section of suppliers and buyers there.
The joke on farmers is that it costs nothing to be QA

adne · 22-09-2019 7:49pm

Seems like a perfect candidate for investigate journalism to bring this under the spotlight and into the public eye

kk.man · 22-09-2019 8:54pm

I've an inspection next week. I am going to speak my mind and ask can I join the Red Tractor scheme.

22-09-2019 9:03pm

If I was working for bord bia or the likes ,I’d tell farmers to go sell their own produce and watch them fold in a few weeks . A number of farmers have turned into non stop whingers . Facebook, full of people posting pictures of Leo,Larry, coveney and his wife and creed , same ****e day after day .

amacca · 22-09-2019 9:17pm

wrangler wrote: »

The joke on farmers is that it costs nothing to be QA

does it not cost you time, energy, inspections, rat baiting stations, safety statements, form filling, ubiquitous signs that are as omnipresent as council jackets etc etc all so some jumped up clipboard warrior jobsworth can tick a box that you've ticked a box so we can all justify our existence

does it not cost you another lever for the processors etc to beat down price and make production more unnecessarily onerous

do all these schemes not end up costing the producer much more than anyone on the chain?

older by the day · 23-09-2019 12:32am

I was all for board bia, as it kept my paper work and farm work up to date, and I have joined since it started and always passed. Till last April. A young guy, the worse bas@ard that ever came in to my yard. Down on his knees looking for dirt, in side in the cow box . Checked all the drive covers. When I told him I used no sprays he demanded to see my milk account, I didn't. I would have ran him only for I need it to supply milk. Never had a problem. I'm due in Oct again I already have half the farm carried up to a neighbour s yard.

Birdnuts · 23-09-2019 12:55am

Bord Bia have lost the confidence of alot of farmers and increasing numbers of more dicerning consumers - they need to have a good hard look at themselves and review the basis for alot of their so called "quality" marks.

wrangler · 23-09-2019 7:18am

amacca wrote: »

does it not cost you time, energy, inspections, rat baiting stations, safety statements, form filling, ubiquitous signs that are as omnipresent as council jackets etc etc all so some jumped up clipboard warrior jobsworth can tick a box that you've ticked a box so we can all justify our existence

does it not cost you another lever for the processors etc to beat down price and make production more unnecessarily onerous

do all these schemes not end up costing the producer much more than anyone on the chain?

You'd be doing most of it anyway if you were managing your farm.
Safety statements and baiting stations are required in a lot of businesses.
Then there's the bonus....... a lever for you to increase your price.
Farmers attitude to authority in the past is a big reason for ending up with poor entitlements

memorystick · 23-09-2019 7:39am

K.G. wrote: »

Without doubt the most important organisation is Irish agriculture and things id be alot worse without them

I always thought that the IFA was the most important. Defending farmer's rights and stuff.

foundation10 · 23-09-2019 8:50am

Bord Bia will need to give reassurance to the beef sector after what has happened the past few weeks. They need to explain what they are doing promoting our product and their strategy for beef going forward. Bord bia needs to put figures on what % of their budget and staff resources are being applied to the beef sector. More transparency needs to be forthcoming.

_Brian · 23-09-2019 9:15am

I think since were managing to export 90% of the beef we produce someone somewhere is doing something to get it out.

Do I think they are a 100% efficient organisation at doing this ?, no, I’d expect not, no public body is efficient, that’s just life, your setting yourself up for disappointment if you think it could be.

We’re not certified, many of those I deal with are sick to death over what they see as nothing but “nit picking” in order to find faults. Again, these are a bunch of paperpushers, their paperwork protects them, creating “issues” justifies the process and legitimises it’s continuance.

amacca · 23-09-2019 7:11pm

wrangler wrote: »

Then there's the bonus....... a lever for you to increase your price.

Bull**** ...a way to devalue a certain percentage of the product

wrangler wrote: »

Farmers attitude to authority in the past is a big reason for ending up with poor entitlements

Totally agree....allowing various parasitic organisations to systematically run the sector into the ground was a bad idea and farmers facilitated this by not working together and being more intransigent as power/control and influence drifted from their hands was a mistake....you gotta fight for your right to party in this world.

wrangler · 23-09-2019 7:33pm

amacca wrote: »

Bull**** ...a way to devalue a certain percentage of the product

Totally agree....allowing various parasitic organisations to systematically run the sector into the ground was a bad idea and farmers facilitated this by not working together and being more intransigent as power/control and influence drifted from their hands was a mistake....you gotta fight for your right to party in this world.

Jokes on you then, which is the best tactic then , blocking factory gates and getting very little,...... or lobbying and getting €100m for the beef sector, plus €10 ewe, plus an increase in the ANC, plus bringing our tax allowance up to paye level, plus I think sucklers are getting €80/hd this year, That's all being done by farmers that are working for other farmers all year not just for six or seven weeks, A lot of farmers have been robbed by the last two months to only gain 8c/kg on anything that isn't overage and lose a fortune on anything that is overage. and they know who's running them into the ground for the last two mths
I see nothing to celebrate for the protests yet

amacca · 23-09-2019 7:39pm

wrangler wrote: »

Jokes on you then, which is the best tactic then , blocking factory gates and getting very little,...... or lobbying and getting €100m for the beef sector, plus €10 ewe, plus an increase in the ANC, plus bringing our tax allowance up to paye level, plus I think sucklers are getting €80/hd this year, That's all being done by farmers that are working for other farmers all year not just for six or seven weeks, A lot of farmers have been robbed by the last two months to only gain 8c/kg on anything that isn't overage and lose a fortune on anything that is overage. and they know who's running them into the ground for the last two mths
I see nothing to celebrate for the protests yet

oh I'm not celebrating the protests...maybe it wasn't a great idea/maybe it prevented a slide to even lower prices

Im thinking that these quangos are always the thin end of a wedge, you'll barely be able to look sideways in your own place soon and for **** all in return ...and they do cost a lot with questionable return

23-09-2019 8:23pm

amacca wrote: »

oh I'm not celebrating the protests...maybe it wasn't a great idea/maybe it prevented a slide to even lower prices

Im thinking that these quangos are always the thin end of a wedge, you'll barely be able to look sideways in your own place soon and for **** all in return ...and they do cost a lot with questionable return

Cattle numbers were getting tighter in the lead up to blockades , so the timing could have been better . But it was no harm to show factories bosses what’s there

Muckit · 23-09-2019 8:32pm

wrangler wrote: »

Who would you put on.....ould farmers.

I think the job is made for you. Let herself walk the dogs

kk.man · 23-09-2019 10:20pm

Bord Bia guy called this evening and he got it for a good 15 mind. I started by saying no farmer should fail an inspection. I couldn't rattle him in fairness partly because he is a farmer too.

I got 98 % but still think that organisation has lost its moral authority.

Muckit · 25-09-2019 11:14am

Bord Bia Audit passed. I reappraised my stance on auditors as l posted previously. I was angry l suppose at the time. My "beef" is with the system l thought, not the ordinary man on the ground. So why would l vent my frustration at a fellow parttime farmer like myself out to earn a crust?

So l checked my attitude and got my business in order.

My mother, although no longer involved in the farm but still geographically living beside it, became an unplanned part of the welcoming committee. The auditor, weliies at the door, was already sitting in her kitchen drinking tea and eating homemade cake by the time l came from work and arrived at the yard!!

I was 5 minutes early for the appointed time, but l hadn't factored in that he might arrive even earlier! So the sight of him swaying in my mothers rocking chair by the range took me by surprise and brought a smile to my face!

Joking about how things had played out, we made our way towards the door and got about our business, walking out the yard and then on to see the stock.

After some questions and final bit of paperwork, l was handed my papers. All passed. Job done.

wrangler · 25-09-2019 11:23am

Muckit wrote: »

Bord Bia Audit passed. I reappraised my stance on auditors as l posted previously. I was angry l suppose at the time. My "beef" is with the system l thought, not the ordinary man on the ground. So why would l vent my frustration at a fellow parttime farmer like myself out to earn a crust?

So l checked my attitude and got my business in order.

My mother, although no longer involved in the farm but still geographically living beside it, became an unplanned part of the welcoming committee. The auditor, weliies at the door, was already sitting in her kitchen drinking tea and eating homemade cake by the time l came from work and arrived at the yard!!

I was 5 minutes early for the appointed time, but l hadn't factored in that he might arrive even earlier! So the sight of him swaying in my mothers rocking chair by the range took me by surprise and brought a smile to my face!

Joking about how things had played out, we made our way towards the door and got about our business, walking out the yard and then on to see the stock.

After some questions and final bit of paperwork, l was handed my papers. All passed. Job done.

Its not difficult to pass,

grassroot1 · 25-09-2019 11:29am

wrangler wrote: »

Its not difficult to pass,

If you dont have an off farm job.
If you are anal about keeping dockets receipts and paperwork.
if you don't have breeding sheep or cattle.
If you don't get snowed under at the busy times.
If you can be ready at the drop of a hat to sit for 4 hours scroling through spread sheets and records.

foundation10 · 25-09-2019 11:30am

Muckit wrote: »

Bord Bia Audit passed. I reappraised my stance on auditors as l posted previously. I was angry l suppose at the time. My "beef" is with the system l thought, not the ordinary man on the ground. So why would l vent my frustration at a fellow parttime farmer like myself out to earn a crust?

So l checked my attitude and got my business in order.

My mother, although no longer involved in the farm but still geographically living beside it, became an unplanned part of the welcoming committee. The auditor, weliies at the door, was already sitting in her kitchen drinking tea and eating homemade cake by the time l came from work and arrived at the yard!!

I was 5 minutes early for the appointed time, but l hadn't factored in that he might arrive even earlier! So the sight of him swaying in my mothers rocking chair by the range took me by surprise and brought a smile to my face!

Joking about how things had played out, we made our way towards the door and got about our business, walking out the yard and then on to see the stock.

After some questions and final bit of paperwork, l was handed my papers. All passed. Job done.

Well done, I find the auditors are fine most of the time and keeps you in check for cross compliance as well. Most likely they are not bord bia employees as these are normally outsourced contracts. Its the senior management that need to be questioned on their strategy for promotion of beef to date and into the future.

foundation10 · 26-09-2019 2:31pm

Creed defends Bord Bia on beef labelling

https://www.independent.ie/business/farming/beef/creed-defends-bord-bia-on-beef-labelling-38525825.html

I wonder are we getting the full picture on this labelling issue?

Anto_Meath · 26-09-2019 3:42pm

I still haven't heard who actually places the Bord Bia labels on in the meat factories. Like do factories print the labels with permission from Bord Bia and stick them on themselves - most likely and therefore not worth the paper they are printed on as we know when it comes to meat factories labeling food they can be very fluid with the actual truth.
Or have Bord Bia got inspectors in factories that over see the whole process and then when they are satisfied that everything is correct and above board do they label the food as Bord Bia certified?

Muckit · 26-09-2019 3:59pm

I wonder how much info have the factory access to? Like is it red light/green light about who is QA certified or have they access to info on exact date when your QA period lapses.

Is it them or BB that have to figure out movements?

How can l as a farmer check the no of movements of my stock? Blue card signing is not one bit reliable.

Bord Bia

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