The board of Isle of Man Meats Ltd has acknowledged the recent open letter from ManxNFU which said the farmers’ union has no confidence in its leadership of the island’s abattoir.
A statement from Isle of Man Meats said the board wanted to “make it clear that we understand the seriousness of the concerns which have been raised”.
In an open letter, the MNFU said: ““The ‘change programme’ implemented by the current Managing Director, following a period of imposed instability and chaos has not delivered. Rather it has had the opposite effect of causing further depredation of service and has highlighted the Boards ineptitude at managing the situation.
“Levels of communication are abysmal. Refusal to meet with the industry at an Island wide producer forum, called for last February, and lack of acknowledgement of the now dire situation is appalling. Confidence in the Plant’s ability to service the industry, the retailers and consumers has now hit rock bottom.”
Response
Reacting to this, Isle of Man Meats said it is “in a period of change as a result of the embedded, inherited issues that are not easily resolved”.
“It will take time to overcome these issues by their very nature,” it added.
“We wish to reassure our stakeholders, including ManxNFU, that we remain focused on working towards common goals which – in the long-term – will benefit the Island’s farming and food sectors.
“As highlighted in the open letter, as a Board we are very much aware that we are approaching a peak period of intake, so we are doing everything we can to balance the needs of the producers with a sustainable financial business model that is fair and equitable for all stakeholders.
“Isle of Man Meats remains committed to working with all our key stakeholders in the supply chain to build a strong, sustainable future for the island’s food security.”
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