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There was a protest outside the Guinness factory today, here's why

Dozens of farmers held a demonstration.

DOZENS OF MALTING barley growers staged a protest outside the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin today.

A spokesperson for the farmers told TheJournal.ie that the demonstration was largely centred on prices, but also brought on by “a ramping up over the years of quality standards from Diageo”.

He said that “very late” into the 2014 planting season Diageo, through its handlers Boortmalt, made changes to the amount of protein that must be in the barley.

This led to many farmers being afraid they wouldn’t be able to meet the required standards. As a result, nearly all grain was sold at harvest time “at low prices not seen since the 1970′s”.

In a statement released today, the growers said that they are “delighted to see an increase in demand and want to supply it, but feel they are being forced out of this sector because of the poor returns for such a high quality, high specification product”.

They are calling on Daigeo to increase the price they receive per tonne of crop from €147 to €170.

The spokesperson said that, at present, farmers are producing “a really quality food product” while receiving the “price of an animal feed product”.

Growers also want Diageo to ensure more direct consultation with growers on specification and conditions, rather than ”forcing changes on a take-it-or-leave-it basis without fully examining and listening to the impact on growers”.

Diageo was contacted for comment but none was received by time of publication. 

They’re offloading more premium drinks, but Guinness brewer Diageo has still taken a hit

Another 48 hours: Farmers dig-in for overnight meat factory protests

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32 Comments
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    Mute finners_99
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:33 PM

    It may well be time for farmers to look at the coop movement again. They sold their souls esp in meat and dairy and are under constant pressure since.

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    Mute James Conway
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:39 PM

    I couldn’t agree more. I made the same comment on here a couple of months ago on another article involving prices farmers get for their produce. In the late ’80s they saw the dollar signs when the likes of Glanbia went on the stock market. If they don’t stick together then nothing will change. If Diageo want a product with a higher protein level they should be willing to negotiate on the price though.

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    Mute John S
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    Nov 10th 2014, 11:09 PM

    They can’t compete with the scale of the large factories.

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    Mute Dermot Ryan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 11:16 PM

    of course the farmers can compete in the factories – one overdraft form a financier of 1.4 billion at even 105 and a commitment from the farmers to hand over 20% of their grants fro x number of years and we could close down the whole lot of them !
    the suppliers are on their last chance and the government are toast since the Fodder crisis as are the I.R.A let both things fester too long !
    I bet if two thousand beef farmers cancelled their direct debits to the I.F.A tomorrow the beef thing would be sorted by lunchtime !
    Those who claimed to be our friends have been found out – leave them on the rack for a while to make sure they are well and truly never forgotten ! This must be indelibly scorched onto the minds of the farming community – so it never happens again !

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    Mute Dermot Ryan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 11:23 PM

    * 10% = 105 ..apologies !
    and the I.F.A. not the I.R.A. …APOLOGIES AGAIN !

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    Mute NewVision Ireland
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    Nov 11th 2014, 7:08 AM

    I was expecting a huge story from the Irish independent about how SF had covered up the price fixing of farm produce and all the while there they were eating fillet steak and drinking Guinness. How Gerry was a vegetarian while pretending he really liked his Guinness stew all these years.

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    Mute Desmodromic
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:21 PM

    Food processors really have the poor farmer on the rack. Same prices for main products as 20+ years ago and input prices through the roof. Prices in the shops are not the same as 20 years ago though!

    113
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    Mute Martin Sinnott
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:15 PM

    They don’t care about the Irish anymore ! There are selling Bushmills and paying farmers less. Quick Profit, profit is all they care about Now.

    110
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    Mute León O'Keeffe
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    Nov 10th 2014, 9:44 PM

    Another day, another farmer’s protest…how do they find time to actually farm?? Well I guess if you believe farmers they are all losing money all the time so I guess they don’t really need to bother producing anything because it doesn’t pay them

    65
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    Mute Gerry Ryan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:00 PM

    But The EU does for doing nothing!!

    34
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    Mute Markonline
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:02 PM

    I guess the 140,000 other farmers were doing their work for the day, because that’s how it goes. While you have your feet up on Christmas Day, spare a thought for the guy that has to put the boots on again and attend to his stock.

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    Mute Markonline
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:41 PM

    @gerry. The EU/irish government/me and you pay farmers subsidies for implementing environmental policies and providing food security/quality measures. Both carrot or stick policies and regulations that farmers have little (if any) say in.

    42
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    Mute Dermot Ryan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 11:19 PM

    lovely meitheal talk mark !

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    Mute Markonline
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    Nov 11th 2014, 12:09 AM

    Thanks Dermot, as the son of an electrician who has the expensive hobby of a 100 acre family farm and raised his family to dodge the noose, I find it hard to stay stump on ignorance occasionally.

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    Mute Dermot Ryan
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    Nov 11th 2014, 1:59 AM

    cheers man !

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    Mute Finbarr Quirke
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    Nov 10th 2014, 9:45 PM

    Mmmm I’d luv a Guinness right about now.

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    Mute Seán Grennan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 9:44 PM

    Few stout lookin’ lads the alright

    48
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    Mute Eugene Walsh
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:10 PM

    I’d murder a beeeeeamish!

    37
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    Mute Gerard Carey
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:14 PM

    I smell 10c on a pint.

    36
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    Mute Dermot Ryan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 11:22 PM

    they don’t have to put it up – the government could do a lot but they are too busy looking at galnbia diverting its tax through Luxembourg to care is my guess !

    32
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    Mute Ían Ó Ceallaigh
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:20 PM

    Diageo shed staff every 2 years and tinker with product to cut costs, do the farmers really expect to squeeze money out of them

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    Mute verbal kint
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    Nov 10th 2014, 9:46 PM

    Seen this going on today. Bit out of order they were circling outside the entrance, clearly obstructing tourists from entering.

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    Mute Dermot Ryan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 11:18 PM

    what order ? – the imaginary guy from a film’s order is it ?

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    Mute Paddy Hannigan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 11:56 PM

    Guinness is a very different product to even 20 years ago.It’s been tinkered with to the point of death at this point and has no real character any more.I believe it has to do with them trying to get it tasting the exact same in every pub in Europe that has destroyed it. Traditionaly it was best in the pubs in Dublin and got progressivly worse the further out you went.*That was a good reason for a Dub to never leave the city.* It has been refined and messed about with too much.

    *Although the is a place near Tara St station that for some reason seems to serve a pint as it was 25 years ago. I swear they have run the lines through some kind of time machine.Magic Stuff.

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    Mute Ían Ó Ceallaigh
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    Nov 11th 2014, 3:59 AM

    Actually the better product tended to be sent to Cork, to counter Murphy’s and Beamish. Also nothong to do with consistany flavour, alcohol content lower, less hops, less roasted barley, synthetic sugars (ales) all reduce costs across all brands.
    Coupled with closure of Waterford, Kilkenny and Dundalk, transfer of customer contact to Belfast, shedding of operations staff etc all to increase the share price. The suppliers are seen only as something to be squeezed.

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    Mute Ían Ó Ceallaigh
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    Nov 11th 2014, 9:53 AM

    Can the people down-voting please point out where I am being false or wrong?

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    Mute Seán Grennan
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    Nov 10th 2014, 9:44 PM

    Few stout lookin’ lads there alright

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    Mute Mark Miller
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    Nov 10th 2014, 10:10 PM

    Jaysus Seán was there more than one??

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    Mute John Denby
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    Nov 10th 2014, 11:25 PM

    Globally its been a terrible year price wise for all cereal commodities, last year wasn’t much better. Normally I’m the first to jump in for farmers but in this case the global market conditions are at play. Every other tillage farmer in the country is taking a hit so I’m afraid you’ll have too aswell. Im sure 2012 prices reflected the year that was in it!

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    Mute Joe L
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    Nov 11th 2014, 1:23 AM

    Diageo put five cent on the pint in 2012 to cover the increase in the cost of barley that year. This year the price of barley going for Guinness is €99.40c a per ton less than 2012 and yet the five cent remains which would make you think that both producer and pint drinker are being ripped off!

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    Mute John Denby
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    Nov 11th 2014, 5:18 PM

    Fair enough!

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