County Fermanagh countryside. Picture: Cliff Donaldson
Representatives of the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) met with senior management from the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) today following footage that circulated last weekend relating to the organisation.
During the meeting, the UFU raised concerns expressed by members and sought clarification from AFBI regarding the issues reported.
UFU President William Irvine said maintaining confidence in organisations operating within the agri-food sector is important.
“Farmers across Northern Ireland are held to extremely high standards and are subject to rigorous inspections and compliance requirements. It is important that all organisations operating within the sector, including publicly funded research bodies, are held to the same high standards.”
The UFU also raised concerns regarding the lack of full-time farmer representation on the AFBI board. “Farmers are key stakeholders in AFBI’s work and bring valuable practical experience that can strengthen discussions around the future direction of agricultural research. DAERA and AFBI need to understand that more farmer representation on the AFBI board would make it more effective”
The UFU said it will continue to engage with AFBI to ensure the needs of Northern Ireland farmers remain central to the future direction of agricultural research.
