FARMERS' FURY over FOREIGN BEEF SALES
By David Shrimpton
Contract caterers feeding foreign beef to British soldiers could soon face protests from angry farmers who believe home-produced meat is suffering from unfair discrimination.
A spokesman for the National Farmers Union (NFU) in the South-west said that contract caterers supplying the Armed Forces were understood to buy most of their beef from overseas.
Other possible targets for the farmers' protests - which are growing increasingly belligerent - are school meals caterers still boycotting British beef over BSE fears.
Last week it was the turn of Beefeater restaurants in Wales and the West Country to be picketed by frustrated farmers, angry that the 295-strong chain buys its steaks from Argentina. Around 20 outlets were affected.
Customers were asked to sign petitions in support of British farming and protesters then spoke by telephone to Beefeater directors to discuss the group's policy on British beef.
A Beefeater spokeswoman said the chain had given permission for the demonstrations to go ahead and supported British beef.
"We are entirely sympathetic with the farmers' plight," she said. "We probably sell more British beef than any other restaurant group in the UK. We use prime Scottish beef in our beefburgers.
"We also use British beef in a lot of our dishes, including our beef and Boddington's pie. We needed to explain to the farmers why for the past 10 years we have sourced our steak cuts from overseas."
The spokeswoman claimed the reason for buying steaks from Argentina was that British suppliers were unable to meet the chain's requirements. "Our demands are so enormous that we simply couldn't find a UK supplier who could give us the quantity and uniform quality of beef that was necessary," she said.
Beefeater has, however, managed to find enough home-produced beef to put a British rib-eye steak on to its menu later this month.
The protesters were mainly members of the NFU angry at the collapse of beef prices following the BSE crisis, although the demonstrations were not organised by the union.
