First Milk adds dedicated Nestlé farmer group

Farmers sending their milk to Nestlé’s Cumbria factory have joined a dedicated supply group.

The members of dairy co-op First Milk will carry out several environmental initiatives on their farms, while producing milk for the hot chocolate and cappuccino sachets made at the manufacturer’s Dalston plant.

Schemes include cutting greenhouse gas emissions, increasing milk from forage and boosting biodiversity.

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First Milk sales director Fraser Brown said the Nestlé First Milk Sustainability Partnership offered benefits to farmers in the nearby community and the wider environment.

“Nestlé’s commitment to a relationship built on the foundations of a short, sustainable supply chain is a vision which First Milk and its British farmer-owners fully share,” he said.

At Nestlé’s factory in Girvan, Ayrshire, a dedicated supply group of First Milk has been in place since 2010.

The 65 farmers have lowered their greenhouse gas emissions by 5.7% and six of them have given over 60 acres of land to biodiversity schemes.