TheDairySite Newsletter - 5 April 2012

Welcome to this week's newsletter

Editorial: Could the Spanish Dairy Sector Collapse?

This week, the Spanish Small Farmers Union (UPA) has said that the Spanish milk market is on the brink of a collapse. The union says that rising production costs are crippling farmers, and farmgate milk prices are falling.

For the dairy industry, feed accounts for around 70 per cent of production costs. These feed costs have reportedly increased by 50 per cent since 2010 and the current drought situation is set to make this worse.

UPA has said that demand for dairy products is increasing, which should economically speaking increase prices, but as yet Spanish and European milk producers, have not seen this.

Spanish producers are set to organise protests over the coming month, demanding a fair price for milk.

Arnaud Petit, Director of Commodities and Trade for Copa-Cogeca told TheCattleSite that Spain was not the only country suffering from falling milk prices. In fact, it is a trend that has been seen across Europe in the last couple of months.

Passing the cost of production on from producers to retailers and onto the consumer is a global problem, he explained.

Whilst Spain is suffering from drought, it also has a feed advantage due to the trade deal it has with South America, he says. Through this trade deal Spain can import around two million tonnes of maize and sorghum at a low duty, providing low cost feed for producers. However, Mr Petit points out that South America is also currently suffering from severe drought, which has lowered harvest estimations, particularly for maize.

Whether the Spanish industry is on the brink of a collapse or not is unknown. Certainly producers are struggling with high production costs and a low milk price. Whilst it is too early to see any impact of the European Milk Package, which was given the go ahead last month, it is hoped that when it comes into play, it will give producers more power to negotiate with processors for a fair milk price.

This week's newsletter is a day early due to a Bank Holiday in the UK tomorrow.

Happy Easter!

Charlotte Johnston

This Week's Feature Articles

We have 5 new features this week:

Linking Expressed Genome to Environment: Epigenetics
An overview of the importance of epigenetics in animal breeding and research to characterise epigentics from the final scientific report from the EU group, Sustainable Animal Breeding (SABRE) subtitled 'Cutting Edge Genomics for Sustainable Animal Breeding'.

Raw Milk: Fact or Fiction?
The use of raw milk as a beverage for humans is a hotly debated topic. A simple Internet search using the term "raw milk" yields conflicting claims about its benefits and dangers. Many people base their opinions about raw milk on myths rather than facts. Not knowing the risks may lead people to drink raw milk and risk illness from harmful bacteria. If you are thinking about adding raw milk to your diet, or if you are curious about the debate, then this publication from the University of Florida will help you sort through the myths and facts of the raw milk debate.

Developing Grass and Clover Varieties
April 2012 marks the beginning of the final year of research being undertaken on four exciting grass and clover ‘Breeding LINK’ projects at the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences IBERS (Aberystwyth University). 'Breeding LINK' comprises four projects funded under the Defra Sustainable Livestock Production (SLP) LINK programme.

Continuous Housing of Dairy Cows
The continuous housing of dairy cows is a controversial topic in the UK, here the British Society of Animal Science, looks at the benefits and problems posed by housing dairy cows throughout their lives.

Bridging the US China Trade Gap
The growing US trade imbalance with China has been a major cause of concern for US policy makers, according to a study by Xiuzhi Wang, Edward A. Evans, and Fredy H. Ballen for the University of Florida.

Market Reports

» USDA Dairy Products Prices Highlights
» GB Animal Feed Statistical Notice
» USDA Dairy Products February 2012 Highlights

Company News

Anpario Acquires Meriden Animal Health Limited
UK - Anpario plc, one of the leading suppliers of natural high performance feed additives to enhance health, growth and sustainability in global agriculture and aquaculture markets, has acquired Meriden Animal Health Limited.

Merial Acquires Newport Laboratories
FRANCE & US – Merial, the Animal Health division of Sanofi, has announced that it has acquired Newport Laboratories, a privately held company based in Worthington, Minnesota, and a leader in autogenous vaccines with a focus on swine and bovine production markets.

IVCC and Pfizer to Collaborate with CVMA
CHINA - The Chinese Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) and the International Veterinary Collaboration for China (IVCC), a consortium of leading veterinary medical schools in the United States and United Kingdom and Pfizer Animal Health, announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding through which the CVMA will collaborate with the IVCC to advance veterinary medical education and animal health in mainland China.

Global Dairy Cattle Industry News