Dairy farmers reject latest price cut
Dairy farmers supplying farmhouse cheesemaker Wyke Farms with raw milk have rejected the company’s latest 1.3p/litre price cut for April deliveries.
An emergency meeting was held in Bruton, Somerset, last night (Monday) and the 72 farmers present voted unanimously against the reduction.
All 72 then signed a letter to the company, expressing their anger and demanding a full and independently-verified justification for the price cut.
This letter was due to be delivered to the Wyke Farm management first thing Tuesday morning, and all the farmers plan to turn up at the factory at Wyke Champflower at midday to hear the company’s answer.
The meeting last night was addressed by Farmers For Action chairman David Handley. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen that level of disquiet among dairy farmers,” he told Farmers Weekly. “They were very professional and business like, but they felt they were partners with Wyke Farms and had not been treated as such.”
Wyke Farms supplier Ian Meeker said the farmers had accepted the company’s previous price cuts of 0.7p/litre in January and 1.5p/litre in February as they had been backed up with a full explanation from the company.
“We did not like it, but there was no backlash,” he told Farmers Weekly. “But this latest cut came out of the blue and was delivered without any explanation. That’s what’s fuelled this unrest.”
The feeling among producers was that the company – which has now taken 3.5p/litre from suppliers this year – was simply following other cheesemakers. Dairy Crest recently announced a 1.25p/litre cut from 1 April and Barbers, with a very similar portfolio to Wyke Farms, has cut 2p/litre.
At the very least, Mr Meeker said Wyke Farms should delay the cut until 1 May, and extend the deadline for giving notice from tonight until 30 April. Otherwise producers would be tied in to Wyke Farms for at least another 18 months.
Mr Handley said mass resignation had been discussed at the meeting, but the farmers wanted to give the company a chance to reconsider the April price offer. The overriding message, he added, was that the group would stick together to secure a better deal.
No representative from the Wyke Farms management was present at the meeting, despite having been invited.
- For a view on dairy market issues, see Phil Clarke’s Business Blog
