Industry backing British Dairy Farmers

Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers chairman Lyndon Edwards

“Without action to support dairy farmers there will not be a dairy sector and consumers will not be able to buy British produce which is why it is important to support the Farmers Guardian campaign.

“There are thousands and thousands of dairy farmers but few processors and retailers which has led to an imbalance in power. We need to support our producers.”

Dairy Farmers of Scotland chairman Iain Smith

“Well done to Farmers Guardian for attempting to make Britain ‘Great’ again. In the current financial climate, it is crucial that the British public are made aware of the increasing likelihood that the milk they drink in future might not be British.

“Already, according to HMRC statistics, 134 million litres of milk were imported in 2008 to be used in the liquid market alone. Sign the Farmers Guardian petition now and play your part in safeguarding thousands of British jobs and British dairy cows.”

NFU Cymru Milk Board chairman Mansel Raymond

“The dairy industry needs all the help it can get right now and I applaud the Farmers Guardian for taking the initiative. We need a sustainable dairy industry in Britain for the sake of our consumers, our farmers and our countryside.

“We need a supply chain that works and a commitment from the food service sector to British milk producers.”

Farmers’ Union of Wales milk committee chairman Eifion Huws

“I strongly welcome the Farmers Guardian campaign. I hope it will underline our concern that Wales’ traditional dairy farms, the backbone of our industry, are under threat from decreasing farm gate milk prices and ever-increasing production costs.

“The latest Welsh Assembly Government figures show dairy farms in Wales fell by 588 between 2004 and 2007. That is unacceptable and creates serious worries about the sustainability of our dairy sector.”

NFU Dairy Board chairman Gwyn Jones

”I welcome the Farmers Guardian campaign. Dairy farmers need all the help they can get in a difficult market with input costs high and the turmoil around the recent collapse of DFB.

”As British milk supply continues to fall, consumers are increasingly denied the opportunity of choice they deserve to purchase British dairy products. Consumers are paying a fair price for British dairy products but that money is not distributed fairly down the supply chain.”

Farmers for Action chairman David Handley

”I congratulate Farmers Guardian for taking the initiative on this. If we don’t get help from everyone, including consumers, at the current rate of decline the dairy industry will be unable to supply its consumers with liquid milk 5 years from now.”

NFUS president Jim McLaren

”Quite simply, it may not be possible to buy the wide range of Scottish dairy products unless politicians, producers and consumers come together to insist retailers pay dairy farmers enough to cover the costs of production and allow them to make a profit.

”The fact that most major retailers snubbed the recent Scottish dairy summit means that it is more important than ever that we keep banging the drum for an ombudsman to police the grocery sector in the UK and I commend Farmers Guardian for keeping the volume turned up full on fair trade for British dairy farmers.”

Have your say

Please do not complete the following form field for security reasons.

Name

E-mail

Comment

Post as

Anonymously

Display name