Board members of Bord Bia are due to meet tomorrow morning to discuss concerns around the food company owned by Chairperson Larry Murrin.
It follows recent revelations that Dawn Farms has been using some Brazilian beef in the products it supplies.
A spokesperson for Bord Bia said it would not be commenting until after tomorrow’s meeting.
Minister for Agriculture and Food Martin Heydon has said he has sought a detailed report on all of the matters from Bord Bia including the outcome of tomorrow’s board meeting.
In a statement earlier today Dawns Farms said that the amount of Brazilian beef it used in 2025 was less than 1% of the overall supply.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said she had written to the Taoiseach calling for Mr Murrin’s immediate resignation, stating his actions undermine and damage Irish farming and the agri-food sector.
Aontú joined Sinn Féin in calling for Mr Murnin’s resignation, with party senator Sarah O’Reilly issuing a complaint to the Standards in Public Office and asked fhat they investigate the matter fully.
Bord Bia is responsible for promoting Irish food, drink and agriculture abroad.
Mr Murrin has been chair of the semi-State agency since 2024 following a competitive process.
In recent days, concerns were raised after details emerged that Dawn Farm Foods – of which he is Managing Director – uses some beef from Brazil in its products.
Dawn Farms Foods admitted that Brazilian beef accounted for 1% of the beef it supplied in 2025.
Ms McDonald said, as well as highlighting safety concerns, it raises questions on conflicts of interest and the Government’s oversight of key State bodies.
In a statement last night, Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon said he is aware that Mr Murrin has engaged directly with Bord Bia board members on the issues and that the operation of it is a matter for the board itself.
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Irish Farmers’ Association President Francie Gorman, who sits on the board of Bord Bia, said that without farmer confidence, Bord Bia cannot do its job. He added that he has conveyed his grave concerns about Brazilian beef imports to Mr Murrin.
Eddie Punch, a beef farmer and former General-Secretary of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association said he believes that Mr Murrin’s position is “untenable.”
Mr Punch told RTÉ’s Six One that there was nothing wrong with what Larry Murrin was doing from his point of view as a businessman, “but there’s a lot wrong with it if he wants to be chairman of Bord Bia.
“Because Bord Bia has to be first, foremost and only about getting the best price for Irish beef and European and UK markets.
“I’ve had lots of farmers contact me and to say they are furious doesn’t even begin to describe it.”
He said it may be legal to buy beef from Brazil “but that doesn’t change the fact that Bord Bia has to have farmer buy-in.
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“They have to retain the confidence of the farming community…
“It’s the Irish taxpayer and the Irish famer that funds Bord Bia, and if they have a chairman who is actively bringing in a product which has only one purpose, which is to undermine the price paid to European beef producers. That’s a conflict of interest that cannot be reconciled.
“And Bord Bia staff and inspectors can’t do their job if famers have lost all faith in them.”
