Sir, - The farmers are not really in dispute with the meat processors, but with the EU. West Germany, for instance, is importing meat from more than 35 countries, and New Zealand lamb is on sale throughout Europe, to give two examples. These imports present severe competition, reflecting in our meat-plant prices.
Our fish industry, with its national right to enormously rich eastern Atlantic grounds, was sacrificed to protect Irish agriculture through EU membership. The door was opened blindly to foreign vessels, thus preventing any opportunity to manage the fish stocks in an effective way.
Now, world demand for fish, despite steadily increasing yields from catching and aquaculture, is greater than ever, and prices are excellent. Ireland's farmers and fishermen are both losers because of EU policies. - Yours, etc.,
Arthur Reynolds, Seapoint Avenue, Blackrock, Co Dublin.