Bord Bia: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members]
The following motion was moved by Deputy Martin Kenny on Wednesday, 4 February 2026.
That Dáil Éireann:
notes:
— that Bord Bia's mission statement is to bring Ireland's outstanding food, drink and horticulture to the world, thus enabling growth and sustainability of producers;
— the importance of Irish food and drink exports to the Irish economy;
— the importance of Ireland's reputation around the world as a food producer;
— that the Irish food and drinks industry is dependent on Irish farmers as the primary producer; and
— the animal health and welfare standards that Irish farmers must adhere to, and in particular the standards and conditions that are part of Bord Bia's Sustainable Quality Assurance Scheme;
further notes that:
— Irish farmers and their representative organisations have lost confidence in the Chairperson of Bord Bia, as a result of his company's role in importing Brazilian beef into Ireland; and
— continuing as Chairperson undermines public confidence in Bord Bia, and damages Ireland's reputation as a world leader producing food that adheres to the highest standards; and
calls on the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to use his powers under section 18 (1) of the An Bord Bia Act, 1994 to remove from office a member of the Board, with immediate effect.
Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:
To delete all words after "further notes that" and substitute the following:
"— the Board of Bord Bia, including the Chair, is made up of 15 members from across all areas of the agri-food sector, and its function is to promote, assist and develop, in any manner which the Board considers necessary or desirable, the marketing of Irish food and livestock;
— the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine estimates that total Irish agri-food exports in 2025 will be a record €21 billion;
— the growth in the value of agri-food exports has been remarkable, increasing from an exports value of €10 billion in 2011;
— beef exports to some 70 countries have increased over the last five years by 40 per cent, from €2.2 billion in 2019 to €3.1 billion in 2024, an increase of €890 million;
— Bord Bia is carrying out its mission to a high standard, making its contribution along with farmers and the wider agri-food industry to the export success of a vital sector;
— the Origin Green programme, supported by the work of farmers' and their participation in Quality Assurance Schemes at farm level, has been integral in providing proof points to international customers of the quality and sustainability of Irish food and drink products, and creating market opportunities for that produce;
— the Board of Bord Bia has discussed the issues raised, and the majority agreed outcome was to support the Chairperson to continue in office, with all of the Board members strongly endorsing the personal integrity and experience of the Chair, and acknowledged that there was no legal or governance issue at play;
— the Chairperson has accepted an invitation to appear at the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture and Food on Thursday 5th February to discuss the issues raised; and
— the Government retains confidence in the Chairperson.".
- (Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
An Ceann Comhairle: I must now deal with a postponed division relating to the motion regarding Bord Bia. On Wednesday, 4 February 2026, on the question, "That the amendment to the motion be agreed to", a division was claimed and in accordance with Standing Order 85(2), that division must be taken now.
Amendment put:
The Dáil divided: Tá, 89; Níl, 61; Staon, 0.
Tá
- Aird, William.
- Ardagh, Catherine.
- Boland, Grace.
- Brabazon, Tom.
- Brennan, Brian.
- Brennan, Shay.
- Brophy, Colm.
- Browne, James.
- Burke, Colm.
- Burke, Peter.
- Butler, Mary.
- Butterly, Paula.
- Buttimer, Jerry.
- Byrne, Malcolm.
- Cahill, Michael.
- Callaghan, Catherine.
- Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
- Chambers, Jack.
- Cleere, Peter 'Chap'.
- Clendennen, John.
- Collins, Niall.
- Connolly, John.
- Cooney, Joe.
- Cummins, Jen.
- Cummins, John.
- Currie, Emer.
- Daly, Martin.
- Dempsey, Aisling.
- Dillon, Alan.
- Dolan, Albert.
- Feighan, Frankie.
- Fleming, Sean.
- Foley, Norma.
- Gallagher, Pat the Cope.
- Gannon, Gary.
- Geoghegan, James.
- Gibney, Sinéad.
- Gogarty, Paul Nicholas.
- Grealish, Noel.
- Harkin, Marian.
- Harris, Simon.
- Hayes, Eoin.
- Healy-Rae, Michael.
- Hearne, Rory.
- Heneghan, Barry.
- Heydon, Martin.
- Higgins, Emer.
- Keogh, Keira.
- Lahart, John.
- Lawless, James.
- Lowry, Michael.
- Maxwell, David.
- McAuliffe, Paul.
- McCarthy, Noel.
- McConalogue, Charlie.
- McCormack, Tony.
- McGrath, Séamus.
- McGreehan, Erin.
- Moran, Kevin Boxer.
- Moynihan, Aindrias.
- Moynihan, Michael.
- Moynihan, Shane.
- Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
- Murphy, Michael.
- Naughton, Hildegarde.
- Neville, Joe.
- O'Callaghan, Cian.
- O'Callaghan, Jim.
- O'Connell, Maeve.
- O'Connor, James.
- O'Dea, Willie.
- O'Donnell, Kieran.
- O'Donovan, Patrick.
- O'Meara, Ryan.
- O'Shea, John Paul.
- O'Sullivan, Christopher.
- O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
- Ó Cearúil, Naoise.
- Ó Muirí, Naoise.
- Quaide, Liam.
- Rice, Pádraig.
- Richmond, Neale.
- Roche, Peter.
- Scanlon, Eamon.
- Smith, Brendan.
- Smyth, Niamh.
- Timmins, Edward.
- Toole, Gillian.
- Troy, Robert.
Níl
- Ahern, Ciarán.
- Bacik, Ivana.
- Bennett, Cathy.
- Boyd Barrett, Richard.
- Brady, John.
- Buckley, Pat.
- Byrne, Joanna.
- Carthy, Matt.
- Clarke, Sorca.
- Collins, Michael.
- Conway-Walsh, Rose.
- Coppinger, Ruth.
- Cronin, Réada.
- Crowe, Seán.
- Cullinane, David.
- Daly, Pa.
- Devine, Máire.
- Doherty, Pearse.
- Donnelly, Paul.
- Ellis, Dessie.
- Fitzmaurice, Michael.
- Gould, Thomas.
- Graves, Ann.
- Guirke, Johnny.
- Healy-Rae, Danny.
- Healy, Seamus.
- Kelly, Alan.
- Kenny, Eoghan.
- Kenny, Martin.
- Kerrane, Claire.
- Lawless, Paul.
- Lawlor, George.
- Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
- McDonald, Mary Lou.
- McGettigan, Donna.
- McGuinness, Conor D.
- Mitchell, Denise.
- Murphy, Paul.
- Mythen, Johnny.
- Nash, Ged.
- Newsome Drennan, Natasha.
- Ní Raghallaigh, Shónagh.
- Nolan, Carol.
- O'Donoghue, Richard.
- O'Donoghue, Robert.
- O'Gorman, Roderic.
- O'Hara, Louis.
- O'Reilly, Louise.
- O'Rourke, Darren.
- Ó Broin, Eoin.
- Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
- Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
- Ó Súilleabháin, Fionntán.
- Quinlivan, Maurice.
- Sheehan, Conor.
- Smith, Duncan.
- Stanley, Brian.
- Tóibín, Peadar.
- Wall, Mark.
- Ward, Charles.
- Ward, Mark.
Staon
Tellers: Tá, Deputies Mary Butler and Emer Currie; Níl, Deputies Pádraig Mac Lochlainn and Martin Kenny.
Amendment declared carried.
Question put: "That the motion, as amended, be agreed to."
The Dáil divided: Tá, 88; Níl, 61; Staon, 0.
Tá
- Aird, William.
- Ardagh, Catherine.
- Boland, Grace.
- Brabazon, Tom.
- Brennan, Brian.
- Brennan, Shay.
- Brophy, Colm.
- Browne, James.
- Burke, Colm.
- Burke, Peter.
- Butler, Mary.
- Butterly, Paula.
- Buttimer, Jerry.
- Byrne, Malcolm.
- Cahill, Michael.
- Callaghan, Catherine.
- Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
- Chambers, Jack.
- Cleere, Peter 'Chap'.
- Clendennen, John.
- Collins, Niall.
- Connolly, John.
- Cooney, Joe.
- Cummins, Jen.
- Cummins, John.
- Currie, Emer.
- Daly, Martin.
- Dempsey, Aisling.
- Dillon, Alan.
- Dolan, Albert.
- Feighan, Frankie.
- Fleming, Sean.
- Foley, Norma.
- Gallagher, Pat the Cope.
- Gannon, Gary.
- Geoghegan, James.
- Gibney, Sinéad.
- Gogarty, Paul Nicholas.
- Grealish, Noel.
- Harkin, Marian.
- Harris, Simon.
- Hayes, Eoin.
- Healy-Rae, Michael.
- Hearne, Rory.
- Heneghan, Barry.
- Heydon, Martin.
- Higgins, Emer.
- Keogh, Keira.
- Lahart, John.
- Lawless, James.
- Lowry, Michael.
- Maxwell, David.
- McAuliffe, Paul.
- McCarthy, Noel.
- McConalogue, Charlie.
- McCormack, Tony.
- McGrath, Séamus.
- McGreehan, Erin.
- Moran, Kevin Boxer.
- Moynihan, Aindrias.
- Moynihan, Michael.
- Moynihan, Shane.
- Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
- Murphy, Michael.
- Naughton, Hildegarde.
- Neville, Joe.
- O'Callaghan, Cian.
- O'Callaghan, Jim.
- O'Connell, Maeve.
- O'Connor, James.
- O'Donnell, Kieran.
- O'Donovan, Patrick.
- O'Meara, Ryan.
- O'Shea, John Paul.
- O'Sullivan, Christopher.
- O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
- Ó Cearúil, Naoise.
- Ó Muirí, Naoise.
- Quaide, Liam.
- Rice, Pádraig.
- Richmond, Neale.
- Roche, Peter.
- Scanlon, Eamon.
- Smith, Brendan.
- Smyth, Niamh.
- Timmins, Edward.
- Toole, Gillian.
- Troy, Robert.
Níl
- Ahern, Ciarán.
- Bacik, Ivana.
- Bennett, Cathy.
- Boyd Barrett, Richard.
- Brady, John.
- Buckley, Pat.
- Byrne, Joanna.
- Carthy, Matt.
- Clarke, Sorca.
- Collins, Michael.
- Conway-Walsh, Rose.
- Coppinger, Ruth.
- Cronin, Réada.
- Crowe, Seán.
- Cullinane, David.
- Daly, Pa.
- Devine, Máire.
- Doherty, Pearse.
- Donnelly, Paul.
- Ellis, Dessie.
- Fitzmaurice, Michael.
- Gould, Thomas.
- Graves, Ann.
- Guirke, Johnny.
- Healy-Rae, Danny.
- Healy, Seamus.
- Kelly, Alan.
- Kenny, Eoghan.
- Kenny, Martin.
- Kerrane, Claire.
- Lawless, Paul.
- Lawlor, George.
- Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
- McDonald, Mary Lou.
- McGettigan, Donna.
- McGuinness, Conor D.
- Mitchell, Denise.
- Murphy, Paul.
- Mythen, Johnny.
- Nash, Ged.
- Newsome Drennan, Natasha.
- Ní Raghallaigh, Shónagh.
- Nolan, Carol.
- O'Donoghue, Richard.
- O'Donoghue, Robert.
- O'Gorman, Roderic.
- O'Hara, Louis.
- O'Reilly, Louise.
- O'Rourke, Darren.
- Ó Broin, Eoin.
- Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
- Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
- Ó Súilleabháin, Fionntán.
- Quinlivan, Maurice.
- Sheehan, Conor.
- Smith, Duncan.
- Stanley, Brian.
- Tóibín, Peadar.
- Wall, Mark.
- Ward, Charles.
- Ward, Mark.
Staon
Tellers: Tá, Deputies Mary Butler and Emer Currie; Níl, Deputies Pádraig Mac Lochlainn and Martin Kenny.
Question declared carried.