Rising energy costs are “only the tip of the iceberg” of the increased costs butcher shops across the country are being forced to absorb, one family butcher has said.
James Murphy, owner of Murphy’s Butchers in Carlow, called on the Government to provide more targeted assistance, noting it can set up a committee for a weather warning but cannot create one for businesses facing closure.
The fourth-generation butcher, whose family has been operating from the same premises in Church Street, Tullow, since 1909, said his electricity bill is three times higher than last year.
It is costing him about €100 a day for electricity.
“It’s crazy,” Mr Murphy told the PA news agency. “It’s €6,000 every two months, like it’s saucy enough for a small business.
“Something needs to be done. They’re able to have a committee for a weather warning, an orange or red alert for a storm coming in, but we can’t set it up for businesses closing left, right or centre.
“Energy is only the tip of the iceberg. Everything has gone up. Packaging has doubled because transport went up during Covid. It doubled and never really came down. A roll of clingfilm has gone from €40 to €80. It’s doubled.
“Simple things like labels – our labels have had a 40% rise.
“It’s not just the energy bill coming through the door. They need to have some sort of an emergency committee to look at the overall costs of businesses.”
Mr Murphy described the amount of red tape involved in accessing the Government’s existing support as “frustrating”.
He said the Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme (TBESS) is causing “stress” for small business across the country in the midst of the cost-of-living crisis.
“The biggest problem at the moment is the way it’s all set up to get you to get these (solar panel) grants and to get money back on your electricity bills,” he said.
“There’s too much red tape.
TBESS allows qualifying businesses to claim 40 per cent of the increases in their energy bills.
“If you’re a household, the electricity company gave you €200 off on that source. You didn’t have to apply. It was all straightforward, whereas we have to apply back to Revenue. There’s a lot of paperwork in it,” he said.
“It should be done at source for simplicity for everybody.”
Dave Lang, head of development at the Associated Craft Butchers of Ireland, said increased costs are “damaging” butcher shops across the country.
“It is at a crisis state,” he said.
“We’ve lost butcher shops and we will lose a few more in January. They will trade up to Christmas because, you know, you’ve worked all of 2022, you’re not going to throw it away and pack it all in at the beginning of December.
“You’ll keep going through Christmas to make a few quid, but we are expecting some to close in January.”
He agreed with Mr Murphy that costs across the board are increasing.
The organisation has called for targeted support for craft butchers immediately, given their energy costs are higher than many other small businesses.
“The Government said when the TBESS scheme is running for three months they will review it but that’s going to be February. Some of our guys will be gone by then and won’t be coming back,” Mr Lang added.
“We’re in the danger of disappearing. I mean, thousands of butchers have gone down the drain over the last 20 years.”
He warned that as the Government “reviews things” butcher shops will continue to close.
