Stop "Anti Dairy" Campaign And Support Dairy Farmers
UK - In a debate in Westminster earlier this week, Stephen Crabb Preseli Pembrokeshire MP criticised the government for failing the dairy industry and particularly the Food Standard Agency for what he calls it's 'anti-dairy' campaign.
29 January 2010
2 minute read
The debate on the future of UK dairy farming was led by Mr Crabb. Addressing Members from all parties and from all areas of the UK he opened the debate to say that many of the challenges faced by the dairy sector were the same as those he had addressed in a debate back in 2005.
Mr Crabb raised a number of issues including the recent sharp decline in milk prices; the failure to make progress on eradicating Bovine Tb; the collapse of the Dairy Farmers of Britain co-operative in June 2009; and the continuing lack of confidence in the industry which is holding back investment.
Speaking on the milk price, Mr Crabb recognised the boom in 2007-08 however said since the collapse many farmers are receiving a price for their milk that is well below their production costs and leaving them unable to plan investment in the new kit which they need to stay competitive.
Addressing the collapse of Dairy Farmers of Britain, Mr Crabb said that this had severely knocked confidence across the board. Meanwhile he recognised that supermarket power was increasing and so welcomed the supermarket ombudsman recommendation by the Competition Commission.
"Why, given that the scientific evidence base on which Welsh Assembly Ministers operate is identical to the one available to DEFRA, do English Ministers still refuse to recognise a role for a targeted cull as part of the plan?" Mr Crabb asked the debate.
He said that the frustrating lack of progress in recent years on the eradication of bovine Tb has left the industry in despair.
Mr Crabb’s criticism of the Food Standards Agency, a Government body, highlighted the contrasting messages that the Government are giving to the industry. Only last week, the FSA launched its latest campaign to encourage consumers to buy one per cent fat milk. Mr Crabb said: “I see from its recent press releases, and from its website this morning, that it sees one of its main jobs as warning people away from dairy products, as part of its campaign against saturated fat.”
Finally Mr Crabb argued that “the dairy sector is being made a scapegoat by the FSA because of the Government's rank failure to tackle the more profound drivers of obesity in this country” and suggested that the Government should be concentrating on tackling the real causes of obesity rather than demonising dairy produce.
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