Some of the richest people in Ireland are laying off thousands of workers in order to break a movement of farmers who are protesting over prices.
The beef processors and the big supermarkets make millions in profits each year – and they don’t want to pay their workers properly or give a decent price to the farmers who supply their meat.
For every €10 spent on buying meat,
- the supermarket chains get €5.10
- the beef processors get €2.90
- the farmers get €2.00
The beef processors have accumulated €3 billion in profits while ABP alone has made €175 million in profit last year. ABP is also one of Ireland’s leading tax dodgers – using a company in Luxembourg to help reduce its tax bill.
In order to break the farmers protests, the big meat companies have tried to go to the courts to get an injunction to stop protests at their plants.
Usually these injunctions are hand out like confetti by judges who are linked to the political establishment. So, it was no surprise that an injunction was issued against protesting farmers.
But, in a singular act of courage, the farmers have defied these injunctions. They have stood up for their rights – and they have been correct to do so.
This explains the latest tactics of the meat industry – they are laying off workers to try to turn them against the farmers and to put pressure on the government.
No one should fall for this trap.
The beef bosses can afford to pay a decent price to farees – and keep paying the wages of workers.
We need unity between the farmers and workers to take on the beef barons.
We need to take these companies into public ownership – so that we can shift policy on how meat is produced.
Public ownership can guarantee decent prices for farmers, proper wages for workers – and it can start a just transition that allows small farmers to start moving out of beef in order to reflect changes needed to protect our planet from climate change.
