TheDairySite Newsletter - 29 July 2011

TheDairySite Weekly Newsletter

Friday 29th July 2011

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Welcome to this week's newsletter

Editorial: European Dairy Package Measures Challenged

The European Commission’s proposed package of measures for the dairy sector has been severely criticised by British MPs.

They claim the new measures are not sufficient on their own to redress the problems facing the UK industry.

The Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee has warned that farm-gate milk prices remain below the average cost of production and has called on the Government to set out its strategy to improve the state of the UK dairy sector.

The MPs have called on the Government to ensure that UK dairy farmers are offered written contracts by processors that specify either the raw milk price or the principles underpinning the price, the volume and timing of deliveries, as well as duration of the agreement.

The Committee also argues that the forthcoming abolition of EU milk quotas coupled with growing global demand for dairy products creates a significant window of opportunity for UK dairy production.

A new report from DairyCo in the UK concludes that some of the issues that arise from price movements along supply chains could, in part, be addressed with changes to the way contracts are written.

The report takes a long term look at the markets using data from as far back as 1990, analysing how and when price movements are carried through supply chains. It considers Asymmetric Price Transmission a feature that can occur when price movements among related parts of the supply chain are in some way “uneven”.

In the European dairy sector a number of leading stakeholders are creating an independent body of experts to consider modern dairy cattle management and nutrition challenges.

The group, the European Board of Bovine Experts (EBBE), will be an independent voice for the European dairy cattle sector.

This group will offer guidance and advice to all participants based on current scientific knowledge, management practices and nutritional requirements taking into account animal health and welfare as well as maintaining productivity.

The new European Board of Bovine Experts (EBBE) will eventually include up to 10 top specialists covering the main fields of expertise in dairy cattle management. The group will meet about twice per year and a chairman is to be elected annually by the board members.

Chris Harris

This Week's Feature Articles

We have 4 new features this week:

TB & A Badger Cull: The Facts
Following a comprehensive consultation exercise, the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in the UK has announced a number of measures to control the spread of bovine tuberculosis (TB) in England. The most controversial being plans to license groups of farmers and landowners to carry out science-led, strictly controlled culls of badgers in the areas worst affected by TB.

UK Producer Partnerships With The Retail Sector
Addressing dairy farmers from all over Europe, John Allen, from Kite Consulting gave a UK perspective of partnerships between farmers, processors and the retail sector. Charlotte Johnston, TheCattleSite Editor reports from the European Dairy Farmers' Congress 2011.

Economics Of Dairy Beef Production Systems
Paul Crosson and Edward O'Riordan from the Teagasc Animal & Grassland Research and Innovation Centre look at different beef production systems, and determine which is the most profitable.

Production Of Urea Molasses Mineral Blocks
In most developing countries, ruminant animals usually survive on crop residues and natural herbage, which do not provide adequate nutrients for improving productivity, write M Garg and P Sherasia, from the National Dairy Development Board, India.