Would you buy Meat (labelled as Irish) from Aldi?

I buy their meat if it takes my fancy. Have had some decent steaks. I buy Irish if there is comparable EU fare.
 
Choosey & Ronan C - thank you for clarifying that as word around a few years ago was that they import the meat and I would think that alot of people are still of the same opinion. They are a large employer in the area (and building a masive extension to the factory at present).
 
A Bord Bia stamp does not mean the product is Irish. All it means is that the producer has met the Bord Bia requirements. It is on New Zealand lamb and Northern Irish chicken - please be aware of this. To say it proves the product is Irish is incorrect.

Secondly the Bord Bia stamp is not a statutory requirement, it is simply a nice to have if the producer wants to bother getting approved.
 
Claire1956 said:
A Bord Bia stamp does not mean the product is Irish. All it means is that the producer has met the Bord Bia requirements. It is on New Zealand lamb and Northern Irish chicken - please be aware of this. To say it proves the product is Irish is incorrect.

Secondly the Bord Bia stamp is not a statutory requirement, it is simply a nice to have if the producer wants to bother getting approved.
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Are you sure? If the product has a bord bia quality assurance stamp both the farm and the processor need to be approved. I can't imagine Bord Bia are sending inspectors down to New Zealand to inspect farms down there. Bord Bia covers Northern Ireland but it states that seperately if any production or processing is done up there.

I could be wrong but I thought this was their way to get around not being able to do a 'buy Irish' campaign.
 
@ Sunny, I would agree with you on that and from reading this page it clearly shows that where a product is produced entirely in the RoI it may carry the QAS mark
 
Just to clarify, all products carrying the Bord Bia Quality Mark label are sourced from the island of Ireland. Lamb from New Zealand does not and could not carry the Bord Bia Quality Mark label.
 
It was on Joe Duffy a few months ago, in April sometime I'd say...it seemed at that time that foreign produce could carry the Bord Bia mark.
 
Choosey said:
The great advantage with Aldi is that its a pre-priced product i.e. lb of Specially select mince is €3.49 whereas in a butcher Ia can be charged anything from €4.80 to €6.00 - in some cases this is due to the weighing of a large lb mince!
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I agree the pre-packaged product is a good advantage, especially for steaks where you don't know the price in a butchers until it's weighed. I buy Aldi steaks and agree they are tasty, even the cheapest version. After reading this thread I'll be trying the free range chicken too. I do go to the local craft butcher as well though since they often have good specials on, eg buy 2lbs of mince and get 1lb free and 2lbs is €7 so its 3lbs mince for €7, perfect for freezing. Butchers are good on offers sometimes and still worth a visit in my book. Oh I buy the Aldi wafer thin crumbed ham for lunch sandwiches, lovely aswell.
 
Why should the Irish taxpayer fund a Northern Irish producer that is ultimately owned by a Brazilian to have a stamp issued by an Irish Agency??????? Moy Park is the company in question. The Irish producer has higher employment costs etc... but we are so generous in funding Northern Ire chicken producers so that the consumer can consider it ths same as RoI chicken. Why not concentrate on our own producers, rather than letting plant after plant close down - Castle Mahon, SpringVale, almost Cappoquin (which was saved by non Irish company)..........all those jobs have evaporated but we support those outside our own jurisdiction. It makes no sense!
 
Why should the Irish tax payer fund a QUANGO, Bord Bia, to enhance the image of the product not produced in this jurisdiction????

Also see that O'Kane is now owned by the Brazilian that owns Moy Park. he must be delighted that the Irish tax payer is helping his product sell to the Irish consumer......it's his good luck. But I do have a problem with us funding NI products that don't have the same cost base as ROI produce - the difference in wages would the first clear difference.

Anyway, that is all an aside. The labelling laws are clear, so if the meat in Aldi tastes good and meets your budget, theres no reason to shy from it! My issue is that your money in their till does little to support the Irish economy, i.e. it is not likely to sit in Irish bank accounts to be available to recirculate in the Irish economy. Again a different debate................
 
Claire1956 said:
My issue is that your money in their till does little to support the Irish economy, i.e. it is not likely to sit in Irish bank accounts to be available to recirculate in the Irish economy. Again a different debate................
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My money in Tesco, Dunnes, Aldi, Superquinn and Lidl tills will find its way back into the Irish economy in the exact same way. They all buy from Irish suppliers and producers who employ Irish people or Irish residents.
 
Bordbia said:
Just to clarify, all products carrying the Bord Bia Quality Mark label are sourced from the island of Ireland. Lamb from New Zealand does not and could not carry the Bord Bia Quality Mark label.
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Why should the Irish taxpayer fund a Northern Irish producer
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The Bord Bia approach is wrong. The quality mark should not be given to Northern Ireland companies as they pay taxes to the UK, not Ireland. I'm aware of a couple of instances where major catering/restaurant companies make a big deal about sourcing their products in Ireland, to give the impression that they are helping the Irish economy, but in reality they source their products from Northern Ireland.
 
If you want to open a new thread on this I'd happy to chat about it. However I doubt very much that Tesco or Aldi house any surplus funds in accounts in Irish banks. Perhaps Dunnes, Superquinn et al don't either. But I would have something in my head to support the Irish stores over the Tescos and Aldis.

I genuinely believe that Tesco has done huge damage to the Irish food producers. There is so little room for any small food producer to break into the market and the harsh habits of Tescos are being mimicked by others. Bar the immediate funds needed to meet wages and utility bills, my vote is that the money you put in the Tesco till is in the UK banks within 24 hours. If anyone can shed light that it is otherwise, please correct me.
 
Bord Bia’s quality assurance scheme is operated in consultation with producers (from the Republic of Ireland) who fund Bord Bia with levies and voluntary contributions. Northern Ireland producers who meet the standard must be admitted to the scheme under EU law but must fund their own membership. Chicken produced in the Republic of Ireland bears the descriptor “Origin Ireland” on the quality mark, chicken from Northern Ireland carries that descriptor. Consumers can make the choice.
 
We pay taxes in Ireland that funds you in Bord Bia
Bord Bia then attach an Irish element to products that are not produced in the Irish tax jurisdiction.
That makes no sense whatsoever. End of........
 
Bordbia said:
Bord Bia’s quality assurance scheme is operated in consultation with producers (from the Republic of Ireland) who fund Bord Bia with levies and voluntary contributions. Northern Ireland producers who meet the standard must be admitted to the scheme under EU law but must fund their own membership. Chicken produced in the Republic of Ireland bears the descriptor “Origin Ireland” on the quality mark, chicken from Northern Ireland carries that descriptor. Consumers can make the choice.
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1. Is Bord Bia totally funded by the producers, or are you saying that it is just the Quality Assurance Scheme that they fund?

2. What does Bord Bia classify as a producer ?

3. Must all the producers make the same voluntary contribution, or can some of them contribute a lot more than than the others?

4. You say that producers in Northern Ireland "must fund their own membership " Are you saying that those producers just pay a membership fee, while the ROI producers pay a levy and make voluntary contributions. Can the NI producers make voluntary contributions too?
 
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Choosey said:
I would never have bought meat in Aldi UNTIl I visited the plant that produces the Aldi meat. Its produced in the same plant as Superquinn and many others and the plant itself is very good. I would only buy the Specially Select range but they really are very good value, good standard product. When looking at the label you will see the approval number of the plant in an oval shape that is key to knowing that its Irish. The Bord Bia stamp of approval is also an excellent indicator. While Callan Meats may not kill pork on site they can ONLY use Irish meat if the Bord Bia stamp is applied to the packaging. Callan Bacon itself is a Bord Bia approved processing site so standards have to be maintained in oder to use that label. Bord Bia are very protective of that label. The great advantage with Aldi is that its a pre-priced product i.e. lb of Specially select mince is €3.49 whereas in a butcher Ia can be charged anything from €4.80 to €6.00 - in some cases this is due to the weighing of a large lb mince!
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The only "plant" that "produces" meat is grass. The plants you refer to are processors and packers.

That the approval number of the plant is on the packaging tells you nothing of where the meat is sourced. It merely tells you that the work they do is carried out to Board Bia standards, and that the plant is located in Ireland. It in itself is not an indicator of where the meat comes from. For this you must look for a small label indicating country of origin.

Callan themselves will tell you that they sometimes have to use imported meat. And they are correct when they say that they have never sold imported meat as Irish. They must label the meat with the country of origin, but they may still use the Bord Bia mark.
 
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