Kepak has announced that it will temporarily suspend operations at its Clare site at close of business on Friday 14 February.

Despite a comprehensive review and significant efforts to keep the Clare abattoir operational, management at Kepak has determined that the site is no longer competitive, a Kepak spokesperson told the Irish Farmers Journal.

“Against a backdrop of challenging market conditions for the beef industry in Europe, Kepak Clare has been procuring cattle at a price premium associated with markets such as the United States, China and the UK.

“However, given Kepak Clare is not approved for export to such markets, it consequently cannot achieve the associated price premium to remain competitive, leaving no alternative to temporary closure,” the spokesperson said.

Staff

Efforts are being made to facilitate interested staff at alternative Kepak sites, while all other staff will be temporarily laid off for the duration of the operational suspension.

The future of the factory will remain under review during the temporary closure.

Kepak acquired the Clare site from John Kelly Meats in 2017. At that time, it had a throughput of 20,000 head. The factory currently employs 21 people.

Investment of €6.5m postponed

In September of last year, Kepak said it had indefinitely postponed a planned and publicly announced major €6.5m investment at the Clare site as a direct result of the "illegal blockades" at the time.

Kepak said its Clare site had been the most severely affected of all its plants during the beef protests last year.

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