Supermacs boss Pat McDonagh was strong in his praise for Irish beef at the BEEF 2024 event in Grange last week.

Supermacs has been dealing with the same beef supplier, Rangeland Meats in Co Monaghan for the last 42 years.

“We are currently purchasing €6.5-€7m worth of beef annually for our restaurant chain, with a further €5-€6m being spent on beef for our hotel chain,” he said. For him it’s all about the quality, traceability and safety of Irish beef that makes the company stick with it.

“Our business is based in rural Ireland and a lot of our customers have farming roots, so it makes sense to support them,” McDonagh said.

He did highlight a concerning factor around the growth in chicken sales surpassing beef sales in recent years, which he said was a challenge. He also said he couldn’t put his finger on why this was happening.

For more from BEEF 2024, see page 34.