The Irish Natura and Hill Farmers' Association (INHFA) has called for any future chair of the board of Bord Bia to be independent of the meat processing sector.

The call comes as controversy continues over the current chair Larry Murrin, CEO of Dawn Farm Foods, a company that last week acknowledged that it sources some of its beef from Brazil.

The INHFA is calling for Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon to re-examine the make-up of the Bord Bia board and to ensure that any future chairperson is independent.

INHFA president Pheilim Molloy said that a "radical overhaul" of the governance of Bord Bia was required.

He said the board needs to be "reflective of all interests in the beef supply chain in addition to full transparency when it comes to the interests of board members".

According to Molloy, the controversy has "undermined confidence both with farmers and consumers".

The farm leader asked what information regarding Dawn Farm Foods' sourcing of beef was made available to the board of Bord Bia.

Molloy said that farmer anger over the issue was growing, with many farmers being members of Bord Bia's Quality Assurance programme.

"These farmers have gone to great lengths to ensure compliance in a scheme designed to help promote and sell Irish farm products at home and abroad," he said.

He said it is "now up to the minister to act".

The INHFA president also claimed there was a lack of suckler farmers on the board.

He said: "We have seen concerning developments such as the sacrificing of a naturally-reared suckler brand in favour of a wider Grass-Fed Beef PGI [protected geographic indication].

"This is despite the fact that €6 million was allocated to the promotion and development of the suckler herd," Molloy added.

He questioned "if this decision would still have been made, if there was a better representation of suckler farmers on the board".