Milk Price Negotiations Break Down
AUSTRALIA - The Tasmanian Suppliers Collective Bargaining Group walked out of a milk price negotiation meeting yesterday (22 October) with buyer, National Foods.
23 October 2009
1 minute read
National Foods offered a milk price of 37.5 cents, a price which they claim is almost ten cents above the market average. The package offered also included a AU$1.1 million assistance package to help Tasmanian producers through this difficult period.
The Examiner has reported that farmers in the Tasmanian Suppliers Collective Bargaining Group did not want to settle for a price under 39.8 cents a litre - the price which they say it costs to produce the milk.
Conor O’Malley, Group Executive at National Foods said: 'To pay any higher would significantly undermine the competitiveness of our business. We would potentially lose market share, an outcome that is neither in our interests or those of the farmers and would have serious implications for our 500 Tasmanian employees."
Dairy farmers have vowed to continue fighting for what they call a fair milk price and are planning to protest in Melbourne and Sydney.
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