July 15, 2010

Farmers rally against EU dairy policy

More than 1000 dairy farmers staged a protest outside a meeting of European Council ministers in Brussels on Monday (Jul 12).

The farmers were angered by a recent report from the Commission's High Level Group on Milk (HLGM) that suggested existing dairy market safety net measures were sufficient and direct contracts between producers and dairies were the way forward for the industry.

"The extremely low prices that we saw in 2009 can reoccur anytime and the existing measures cannot prevent it," said Lidia Senra from farmers' organisation, European Coordination Via Campesina, which organised the protest with the European Milk Board (EMB).

"The future lies in a demand-orientated production, with cost-covering prices and a market where all players are capable of acting," she said.

The EMB said that the proposed contractualisation would lead to producers becoming more dependent on the dairy industry, which as a stronger market player, would dictate the conditions.

"One positive aspect of the report of the HLGM is that it clearly acknowledges that the milk producers are in a weak position on the dairy market," EMB president Romuald Schaber said.

Both organisations rejected the HLGM's "short-sighted" proposals and urged European ministers to back a re-orientated dairy policy.