Farron meets UK Dairy Chief to press plight of dairy farmers

3.00.00pm GMT Wed 27th Feb 2008

Local MP Tim Farron today met with Jim Begg, Director General of Dairy UK, to press the cause for dairy farmers in Cumbria and nationwide. Tim had a constructive meeting in which he took the side of local dairy farmers who are facing huge increased costs as a result of the Government's Nitrate Vulnerable Zones policy and rising animal feed and fuel prices. He also followed up on his parliamentary motion earlier in the week noting the reduction of the number of dairy farms in the UK and the role played in this by the supermarkets.

Tim Farron MP said:

"Dairy farmers have seen the price of milk crash over the last twenty years, and it's time that others in the food chain woke up to their plight. This crash has been in part fuelled by disgraceful tactics by the supermarkets, and whilst I recognise that milk prices have risen slightly recently, this has been all but swallowed up by feed and fuel costs, leaving the dairy farmer little better off.

"My meeting with Mr Begg was highly constructive, and we found many areas of agreement, for instance in restoring the abolishing in Agricultural Buildings Tax Relief which was scrapped by the Government. The Government must listen to the demands of farmers and take them into account - creating a new supermarket ombudsman is only a small step on the path to creating fairness for British farmers."