TheDairySite Newsletter - 9 December 2011

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Friday 9th December 2011

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Welcome to this week's newsletter

Editorial: Does The Milk Package Do Enough For EU Dairy Sector?

This week European MEPs and Council negotiators agreed on regulations aimed to boost dairy farmers' bargaining power, ensure fairer prices for raw milk and help prepare for the end of milk quotas in 2015.

Dacian Ciolos Commissioner for Agriculture said that the dairy package will encourage producers to negotiate contracts on price and quality. The new rules will allow producers' organisations to negotiate raw milk prices for the farmers they represent.

Member States may continue to decide whether or not to impose contracts covering milk delivery from farmers to collectors or processors for their territory.

However, where Member States do choose to impose compulsory contracts for milk supplies, these contracts must state the price. Member States may also stipulate a minimum duration for these contracts of at least six months.

Whilst Dairy UK supports this decision, saying that voluntary contracts work well in the UK, Romuald Schaber, President of the European Milk Board has said: “If contracts between producers and the dairy are not obligatory throughout the EU, and instead every country decides on its own whether to introduce them on a compulsory basis or not, then it is simply impossible to improve the European producers’ position in the market.”

Criticising this proposal Mr Schaber said: "Supply management must apply to the entire milk market, otherwise everyone, the producers in particular, will be careering towards the next crisis."

The National Farmers' Union (NFU) in the UK has also said that the milk package falls short in strengthening dairy contracts. Chief dairy advisor Rob Newbery said that the package will not safeguard the long-term future of the dairy sector.

Italy has welcomed the proposals, particularly the option of introducing a supply management system to improve the market for cheeses registered under a protected designation of origin.

Henri Brichart, Chairman of Copa-Cogeca’s Milk Working Party insisted that the deal will give farmers and processors more certainty by allowing them to know, in advance, the price to be paid for the raw milk delivered and the quantity to be delivered.

But he warned that this dairy package is not sufficient in order to meet all the challenges. The tools to manage the EU markets, such as intervention and private storage, remain the most effective tools to help deal with crises on the EU market.

The results of the negotiations will be presented to the Agriculture Committee MEPs on 20 December. Parliament's plenary vote is foreseen for February 2012.

Undoubtedly the milk package will go some way towards improving producers bargaining power - but will it do enough to stabilise the volatile market?

EU farmers lost more than €10 billion during the last milk market crisis.

Charlotte Johnston

TheDairySite Book Focus

Applying HACCP-Based Quality Risk Management on Dairy Farms
The aim of this book is to give practical guidelines and examples for dairy farmers, cattle practitioners and extension people, who desire to jointly develop and implement a HACCP-based quality risk management programme.
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Dairy Processing and Quality Assurance
Dairy Processing and Quality Assurance presents a contemporary update and a unique approach to the topics, and is designed to augment related books in the existing market. The editorial team is comprised of individuals with significant experience in the science and applications of dairy products manufacture. Intended for professionals in the dairy industry, Dairy Processing and Quality Assurance also appeals to professors and students in dairy science for its contemporary information and experience-based applications.
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This Week's Feature Articles

We have 5 new features this week:

Dairying In Viet Nam
On a recent visit to Viet Nam, Stuart Lumb got the opportunity to visit three dairy units and a processing facility. He writes about them here for TheCattleSite.

Should We Be Milking Fewer Cows?
Is it necessary to review the stocking rates on your farm? Kevin Macdonald, DairyNZ Senior Scientist Farm Systems and Dave Clark, DairyNZ Principal Scientist Farm Systems looks at whether some producers would be more profitable by reducing stocking rates.

Risks for Animal and Public Health Related to the Presence of Alternaria Toxins in Feed and Food
Fungi in the family, Alternaria, produce mycotoxins in a range of plants that include cereals and oilseeds. Following a study of the possible adverse effects of Alternaria mycotoxins on the health of humans, farm animals and pets, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) was unable to rule out the possibility of some types of toxin causing problems in chickens, the only species of farm animals for which some toxicity data suitable for risk assessment exist.

Ten Steps To Buying The Right Bull
Dr Scott P. Greiner, Extension Animal Scientist at VirginiaTech college outlines the 10 important steps to guide you through the process of buying a bull.

Spain Dairy Annual Voluntary Report 2011
Spain is one of the few EU countries with a structural deficit of milk production that is enshrined in its quota allocation, according to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.