Statement Bord Bia on report Wakker Dier

Animal welfare is one of the four key elements of the Irish quality system SBLAS for beef and lamb, alongside food safety, environmental protection and traceability. "Wakker Dier's suggestion that animal welfare is not important to SBLAS and Bord Bia members is fundamentally and completely wrong. Farmers who do not meet strict criteria are not certified," explains Tara McCarthy, CEO of Bord Bia.

SBLAS is a rigorous and independently verified certification system. It includes specific animal health and welfare standards, with scientific justification. SBLAS has been an independent ISO 17065 certified company since 2005, has been approved by the Irish government and is a programme under Bord Bia, Ireland's Food Board. SBLAS is an important warranty for Irish beef customers around the world.

Over 49,500 Irish beef farmers are certified members. They are responsible for more than 90% of all cattle farming in Ireland. In total there are more than 80,000 Irish cattle farms in Ireland. Independent audits are conducted every eighteen months on SBLAS-certified farms. More than 150 different criteria are checked. In 2017, 30,407 audits were performed on existing SBLAS members and 3,748 on new applications for participation. This resulted in an assessment at 484 member farms that they did not meet SBLAS criteria. In line with the sanctions policy, these farms lost their certificates. A suspension was imposed on 29 other farms due to shortcomings. Of the new applications, 81 farms did not meet the SBLAS criteria. Their applications were rejected.

Wakker Dier, a Dutch NGO for animal welfare, published a report with allegations about animal welfare in Irish cattle. Bord Bia did not receive any information from Wakker Dier about the 13 farms visited during the undercover investigation. In the absence of the names, addresses or strain numbers of the farmers, Bord Bia cannot confirm whether one of the farms visited by an external party for Wakker Dier are certified members of SBLAS.

"Wakker Dier's allegations do not reflect fairly or factually the high standards of Irish beef production and compliance by farmers," said Tara McCarthy. "To assess and damage the reputation of the nationwide beef production system on the basis of an analysis of only 13 farms is unfair and deliberately false.