Essex producer Ian Chisholm - famous for taking on Tesco in a row over the use of his image on free-range egg boxes - has launched a new website/campaign designed to encourage direct action against the major packers and supermarkets to get fair prices for grass roots egg producers. (See our story for more details)

His website uses evocative language to drum up support - for example, he uses the "C word" (cartel) three times, and accuses "greedy packers" of "making huge profits" by "forcing payment to egg producers down lower than the cost of actually producing those eggs".

What do you think? Are packers to blame for the current squeeze on the market? Is direct action the way to go? What form should that direct action take? Should producers form a co-op to strenghten their hand? Or perhaps forging closer links with packers and supermarkets is the way to go? 

 Farmers For Action been doing it for years, seems impossible to get enough farmers together to have any great effect.

I know over the channel European farmers get seriously militant regarding poor prices* but it doesn't seem to help them out too much, though it does raise the profile of the issue. Co-ops could be a good idea but I think at the end of the day the best way is through the proposed supermarket ombudsman which would ensure producers receive fair prices. I know it might be naive of me to think a government ombudsman will actually work in achieving a fair price or the lobbyists in Whitehall will let the legislation pass but I think it would avoid putting the public or industry off side by seeing protest lines at supermarkets and packers factories.

 

*(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhuC7e05OkI See 1min in for the riot images from SPACE 2010 when dairy farmers, calling for higher milk prices, trashed stands at the exhibition.)

if we all dumped our seconds, instead of taking 5p a doz for them, it would fix the surplus problem.

It's a bit rich to blame the packers. They have been critcised already for failing to match the supply and demand for eggs. But that would involve collusion, which, as Mr Chishlom would recognise, is illegal. It's not their fault so many new entrants came into the free range egg sector when the times were good. The market now must run its course, tho' the supermarkets could help by paying a bit more and ending their myopic demand for GM-free feed.

It has been said many times on this, and other forums that, until the representative bodies of those involved in growing food products start acting like trade unions then the processing and retailing industry will continue to squeeze unreasonably. It is the nature of the processor and retailer to squeeze cost and maximise revenue. That is how they think, that is what they are.

Producers have to take what will not be given,  and their 'Unions' are the only mechanism they have that can possibly do it.'

However, given the 'honours' available to be handed out by those who 'allow' oligopolies, monopolies and cartels, I doubt these unions will truly represent their members interests. Even the best leaders have been suborned into believing that they are serving the national interest ahead of their members interests.