Sir; The National Beef Association is happy to pass out bouquets to any processor who resists the temptation to take advantage of the supply movement restrictions forced on producers by a range of anti-FMD control zones ­ hence our praise for the St Merryn plant at Bodmin on page 24 of The Grocer, June 30. At present it not only pays a fairer price than many other processors but is also using a noticeably more benign carcase dressing specification which puts more money in the pockets of hardpressed finishers too. The slaughter/retail partnership of Woodhead/ Morrisons in Lancashire deserves similar tribute for similar reasons but we have only brickbats for the absence of any coherent or meaningful national price reporting service for prime cattle. By our reckoning there is a 20% price range (158p-202p) for standard R4L bullock carcasses in Britain but no way producers can easily identify those slaughterers who are giving them the fairest deal and reward them by pushing through more cattle ­ which are already getting thin on the ground. What is needed is a mechanism through which the best and fairest payers can publish their prices along with their dressing specifications. But there are too many processors who want to keep their lower payments hidden and the Meat and Livestock Commission, which is the body that can most easily provide this service, is at present reluctant to take up the challenge of acting positively on behalf of both producers and processors who would look forward to their prices being compared in public with those paid by their competitors. Robert Forster Chief executive National Beef Association {{LETTERS }}

Topics