Irish beef exporters face a dramatic challenge in their largest market later this year, when the EU is expected to allow British-born cattle aged over 30 months back into the domestic food chain.
Ireland has been a major beneficiary of the ban due to end in October. It is expected to bring an estimated 10,000 animals on the market and put severe pressure on Irish exports.
Irish beef exports to Britain have soared since 2000 and now stand at a record 270,000 tonnes, nearly half of our total beef output annually. Bord Bia has predicted that, when the ban is removed, Ireland will have to find a market for 75,000 tonnes of beef likely to be displaced by British production.
The EU and Britain introduced the ban because of the links between CJD in humans and bovine spongiform in cattle.