NFU welcomes `ground-breaking` Tesco milk deal
UK - The NFU has hailed Tesco`s announcement that it is setting up a dedicated supply chain to provide its liquid milk requirements, and guaranteeing a price to its suppliers of around 22p per litre, as "the most significant and encouraging development in the dairy industry for a very long time".
4 April 2007
1 minute read
NFU President, Peter Kendall, said: "I would like to congratulate Tesco on this ground-breaking deal. We are delighted that they have endorsed the need to take greater responsibility for the whole liquid milk supply chain and put in place a proper, meaningful partnership with dairy farmers.
"This sort of arrangement is exactly the kind of thing that the NFU has strongly advocated in our Vision for the dairy industry. We will be working closely with Tesco to help them develop this chain in the most effective way for all concerned.
"The additional premium that will be paid for locally sourced milk from smaller family farms is a particularly interesting and potentially significant element in the package.
"This is a critically important deal for nearly 1,000 dairy farmers directly and we hope for many thousands more indirectly. However, this is not a panacea for the whole industry. Not all milk produced on farms is sold in bottles through supermarkets.
"But it is ground-breaking announcement that should set a massive precedent for other retailers to now step up to the plate, not just on liquid milk but other dairy products as well. We shall therefore be re-doubling our efforts to create a better structure in the dairy industry to guarantee the long-term future of a vitally important sector which is still very much under threat."
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