'Some progress' has been reported following marathon talks on the beef prices dispute.
Talks between Beef Plan, Meat Industry Ireland, farming organisations and Government agencies got underway in Kildare yesterday afternoon, overseen by independent chairman Michael Dowling.
The meeting continued until the early hours of the morning, with the talks adjourned after more than 12 hours of discussions.
Beef talks suspended for 1 hour so the participants can grab some food. Clearly enough progress being made after nearly 8 hours of talks if they’re willing to come back and talk at 10.30pm at night.
— Shane Beatty (@ShaneBeattyNews) August 12, 2019
In a statement, the Irish Farmers' Association said: "IFA President Joe Healy said some progress had been made on market transparency and the introduction of a price index.
"There is also a commitment to look at the market specifications that impact on price that exist in the grid."
A document based on the proposals will now be circulated, and talks are expected to reconvene either this Thursday or next Monday.
Recent weeks have seen farmers protesting at meat processing plants over the low prices for their animals.
However, the action was suspended on Friday pending the outcome of the talks.
Meat industry groups, meanwhile, have suspended legal proceedings aimed at trying to stop the demonstrations at processing plants around the country.
