A TD has called for Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon to intervene in the controversy over the Bord Bia chairperson's sourcing of beef from Brazil.

Bord Bia chairperson Larry Murrin is the CEO of Dawn Farm Foods, which last week confirmed that some of its beef is sourced from Brazil.

This has drawn criticism from farm organisations, who have called for a meeting of the board.

Independent Ireland TD Michael Fitzmaurice claimed that the revelations, reported by Agriland last week, "raise serious questions about...whose interests Bord Bia is ultimately serving".

He said that the situation is "deeply problematic" given Bord Bia's role in promoting Irish food on international markets.

The Roscommon-Galway TD called on the minister to "immediately clarify the position of Bord Bia board members and senior figures, and establish whether any are involved, directly or indirectly, in Brazilian beef imports or related enterprises".

"We need absolute transparency. We need to know where everyone on the...board stands," he said.

Fitzmaurice said that the situation "undermines confidence among farmers and causes lack of confidence in Bord Bia at a critical time, particularly as concerns continue to grow around trade agreements such as Mercosur and the standards applied to beef imports from South America.

"Everyone involved in Bord Bia should be wearing the Irish jersey, not-half wearing another one underneath. Bord Bia's job is to serve Irish farming and the Irish food industry, full stop," he said.

The TD also claimed that "some people's positions are untenable" as a result of the controversy.

Agriculture committee

Meanwhile, another TD has called on Larry Murrin to appear before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture and Food.

Aontú senator Sarah O'Reilly said the situation is "utterly unacceptable".

"We have to remember that Bord Bia is tasked with promoting Irish beef and here we have its chair heading up a company that is sourcing Brazilian beef," she said.

"The Irish public expects Bord Bia...to set a standard of unwavering commitment to homegrown products. When its leadership is linked to actions that directly contradict this purpose, it not only sends mixed signals to consumers but also endangers the credibility of our entire food system," O'Reilly claimed.

"The agricultural committee...has a duty to ensure that Mr. Murrin appears before it. There has to be accountability around this very serious mis-step and he simply has to explain it," she said.