Shropshire dairy farms are fearful for their futures due to concerns over insufficient returns, volatile markets and the scale of on-farm investment.
That’s according to an NFU intentions survey, which showed that, of nearly 600 dairy farmers across the country, nine per cent of producers believe they are likely to stop producing milk by 2025 – up from seven per cent last year.
A further 23 per cent said they were ‘unsure’ if their business would continue producing milk beyond 2025.
In addition, 87 per cent of dairy farmers who responded said they are concerned about the impact of government regulation, with feed prices (84 per cent), energy prices (83 per cent) and cash flow and profitability (80 per cent) other key factors that would curtail milk supplies.
Meanwhile, 91 per cent of dairy farmers said the main factor to them increasing milk production would be the scale of investment needed for things such as suitable slurry storage to ensure their farms are compliant – this supports the NFU call for Defra’s Slurry Infrastructure Grant to be extended to cover more areas and to lower the minimum spend threshold needed to access the funding.
Wem dairy farmer Barry Jones, who is also NFU dairy board deputy chair, said: “The UK has some of the highest levels of regulation in the world and we are tasked with and proud to produce milk in a way that is beneficial to the environment and has high welfare standards behind it.
“With increasing pressure on production costs, it is vital that milk buyers recognise the levels of investment required to achieve these world class standards, and that if the farm businesses are not able to make these investments then they will not be able to continue producing.
“Any gap in supply could be filled by importing dairy products from abroad, but if other countries do not have the same exacting standards, then there is the danger that we are exporting our responsibilities and ignoring environmental impacts in other parts of the world.
NFU dairy board chair Michael Oakes, who represents sector interests across the country including in Shropshire, added: “We are now facing a crisis of confidence among Britain’s dairy farmers.
“The results of this survey show that, now more than ever, we need resilient and collaborative dairy supply chains. It’s vital we reverse this trend of boom or bust and invest in our supply chains.
“With increasing global demand for British dairy, we know that the long-term future is bright for our sector. To ensure we maximise this potential, it’s imperative that government continues to work with us to ensure we have the right environmental, regulatory and trade framework in place to support the production of high quality, nutritious and sustainable food.”
David Brookes, who represents the sector across Staffordshire in his role as NFU regional board chairman, said every effort would be made to make the case for the county’s milk producers.
He said: “The survey results speak volumes and there are clearly some big choices for farmers about infrastructure investment.
“High costs and prices below the cost of production, coupled with the cost of finance and higher interest rates, will dent confidence and although we are resilient we are all heavily invested and under pressure due to a very depressed market.
“The NFU will do what it can as family businesses square up to volatility, spiralling costs and uncertainty.
“We have superb standards in the county, excellent herds and a great product and I’d like to thank Staffordshire shoppers for their continued support.”
