Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Twitter LinkedIn
    • FREE Email Newsletters
    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Contact Us
    Twitter LinkedIn
    Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    • News
      • Arable & Agronomy
      • Dealership News
      • Environmental Land Management Scheme/Policy
      • Event News
      • Health & Safety
      • Machinery
      • People
      • World News
    • Farm Machinery
      • Amenity & Maintenance
      • Cultivations
      • Drilling
      • Grassland Equipment
      • Harvesting
      • Muck & Slurry
      • Sprayers
      • Telehandlers
      • Tractors
      • Tractor of the Year
      • Tyres & Tracks
      • Whatever happened to?
    • Precision Farming
    • Markets & Policy
    • Profiles
      • National Arable and Grassland Awards
      • Company Profiles
      • Reader Profiles
    • Livestock
      • Beef
      • Dairy
      • Sheep
    • Magazines
      1. June 2025 issue
      2. Cereals event guide 2025
      3. May 2025 issue
      4. April 2025 issue
      5. March 2025 issue
      6. 2025 Tyre Developments supplement
      7. February 2025 issue
      8. National Arable and Grassland Awards supplement
      9. January 2025 issue
      10. December 2024 issue
      11. November 2024 issue
      12. October 2024 issue
      13. September 2024 issue
      14. August 2024 Issue
      15. 2024 Drills and Seeds supplement
      16. July 2024 Issue
      17. Cereals Supplement
      18. June 2024 Issue
      19. May 2024 Issue
      20. April 2024 Issue
      21. Tyres and Tracks Supplement
      22. March 2024 Issue
      23. National Arable & Grassland Award – Meet the Finalists
      24. February 2024 Issue
      25. January 2024 Issue
      26. December 2023
      27. Agritechnica Preview Supplement
      28. November 2023
      29. October 2023
      Featured

      Cereals event guide 2025 available now

      By Matthew TiltJune 20, 2025
      Recent

      Cereals event guide 2025 available now

      June 20, 2025

      June 2025 issue available now

      June 2, 2025

      May 2025 issue available now

      May 1, 2025
    • Events
    • Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Dairy

    Milk redirection needed to support dairy farmers

    iainhoeyBy iainhoeyMarch 31, 20202 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

    The government is reportedly looking into the redirection of milk from the hospitality sector to the retail market as farmers warn of financial trouble following of a severe drop in demand from cafes and restaurants.

    Whilst there has been an increased demand of 15-20% for milk in grocery, NFU Cymru said this is not enough to offset the 70% fall in demand from the hospitality sector, with the majority of operators forced to close down indefinitely as the nationwide lock down to slow the spread of Covid-19 continues.

    John Davies, president of NFU Cymru, said in a letter to MP  that the UK’s supply chains are ‘highly complex’ and ‘vulnerable to disruption’, and are currently trying to orientate themselves away from the foodservice sector and towards the differing needs of retail outlets.

    Many dairy farming businesses have highlighted severe financial implications due to the coronavirus situation, as the UK’s largest independent processing dairy, Freshways, announced a significant drop in its milk price after seeing a declining demand due to Covid-19’s impact on the hospitality and food service sectors. Payments to farmers by Freshways will be deferred until 15 May.

    Alan Smith, from Bumble Bee Farm in Leicestershire, which supplies milk to Freshways, said: “We’re losing nine pence on every litre [of milk] we send but the worst of it is they won’t now pay us for 70 days. We can’t go on losing forever.”

    A Defra spokesperson said the government is aware of the need to redirect produce due to the Covid-19 crisis and is looking at the matter as a ‘matter of urgency’.

    “We are working closely with representatives from the dairy supply chain to understand what short-term and long-term support the whole sector needs,” the spokesperson said.

     

    Tweet
    Share
    Share
    Pin
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
    Previous ArticleClaas bring forward launch of online PartsDoc catalogue in response to Coronavirus pandemic
    Next Article First Milk announces May milk price hold
    iainhoey

    Read Similar Stories

    Cereals event guide 2025 available now

    June 20, 2025

    Hi-Spec to introduce new diet feeder at Royal Highland

    June 16, 2025

    Farmers to get fairer deals for combinable crops

    June 5, 2025
    Most Read Stories

    Calls for government to include food redistribution into SFI

    July 2, 2025

    Kramp launches own-brand PTOs

    July 1, 2025

    Turney Group to take on Merlo brand with new dedicated depot

    July 1, 2025
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer

    The UK's leading agricultural machinery journal

    Twitter LinkedIn
    © 2024 MA Agriculture Ltd, a Mark Allen Group company

    Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Terms & Conditions

    • Farmers Weekly
    • AA Farmer
    • Poultry News
    • Pig World

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.