Council urged to act on Foyle Meats

A spokesman said: "The Foyle Group which has a processing capacity of 1,500 cattle and 12,000 lambs per week was, at its peak, Northern Ireland's biggest exporters of lambs with supply contracts in France and Tesco throughout the UK. The Company is claiming that reduced margins from processing and a sharp decline in sheep reduction are making the continuance of the work at Campsie unviable.

"Whilst the Company has said that it will work with the Unite union to minimise job losses and explore other job opportunities within the group, this should be a last option.

"Food production and agriculture is something that Northern Ireland does well and in a difficult economic climate where jobs in the public sector may be reduced with possible implications for other sectors, we should be seeking to explore all the options, retain what we do well and seek to develop it further.

"As jobs disappear, so also do the skills and knowledge which have developed over time. The Council and elected representatives need to be more pro-active in keeping employment in the area.

"Numerous and expensive strategies are in place to create employment for the future. It is equally valuable to have strategies which retain what we already have."