New chairman to explore abattoir challenges

The newly appointed chairman of the Isle of Man's abattoir Meat Plant has said his priority in the role was to get to understand the challenges facing the facility.

Damien Corcoran is one of five new directors appointed to the board of the Meat Plant, which receives about £2m in government funding each year, after a series of production delays and order cancellations.

Issues at the plant led to the Manx National Farmers' Union declaring a vote of no confidence in the facility's senior team last month.

Mr Corcoran said the new board had the expertise to enable them to focus on the challenges and form an "actionable plan".

Born and educated on the Isle of Man before joining the British Army, Mr Concoran then moving into a career in retail, working for Aldi, Sainsbury's and Amazon-owned Whole Foods.

Other new members appointed were butcher Rob Teare, red meat businessman Philip Birnie, farmer Andrew McKeown, and agricultural economist and principal author of a comprehensive report on the abattoir Jonathan Birnie.

Mr Concoran said the first steps for the new appointees would be to speak to farmers, butchers and retailers to "understand what the challenges really are" and gather information before taking action.

Reflecting on the role of the facility and its potential for the future he said the "abattoir and meat generally is a critical part of food security".

He said: "If we can get to the point where we are fulfilling domestic consumption consistently, and if we can start getting the requisite volume and quality that we need, we should be able to export out product with pride."

Getting to that stage would see the plant "generate economic activity and propel the Isle of Man brand beyond the island itself", he added.

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