When Leo Varadkar was asked what he was doing to reduce his carbon footprint, he stated that he had cut back on his consumption of red meat, for health reasons and for climate change.

His remarks have been criticised by some of his fellow politicians and by farmers, who have branded them "irresponsible".

Was the Taoiseach right, and should we be eating less meat?

Pat McCormack, president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers, says the Taoiseach should be "out there promoting Irish beef, because it's one of the most environmentally efficient in the globe."

However, environmental journalist John Gibbons says that beef itself "is an extraordinarily inefficient way of turning primary energy into food", and that the beef and dairy industries "have practically strangled out all the other industries."

They joined us to debate the issue.

To catch the full chat press the play button on the image on the top of the screen