Farmers from around the UK descended en masse on London today (11 July) in a bid to raise awareness of the plight they face. A series of cuts to the farmgate milk price from the country’s three largest processors – Dairy Crest, Arla and Robert Wiseman Dairies – have left farmers supplying milk at a price that they insist fails to meet the cost of production. In a display of unity, dairy producer representatives from the NFU, NFU Scotland, NFU Cymru, TFA and Farmers for Action outlined their demands to the capacity-filled Central Hall in Westminster.

“Enough is enough. This is the final straw… The cuts [in May and June] were cuts to the bone and beyond. They were farmers investment, margin and profit… These latest cuts [to come into effect 1 August] are the feed bill, the wages, the housekeeping. These cuts will take us into massive loss-making territory” – Meurig Raymond, deputy president of the NFU

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“Many producers are in an economic black hole and that’s not a good place to be. But the one good thing to come out of it is the unity to drive change. We don’t want a quick fix. We need to get rid of the tyranny of discretionary pricing” – Nigel Miller, president NFU Scotland

“This industry is being screwed every single day of the week. [We demand] the reinstatement of monies that have been taken from us since April 1st and no contemplation whatsoever of a further decrease… The clock is ticking – 20 days to go [until fresh price cuts are implemented on 1 August]. If somebody doesn’t do something in 20 days – including this buy one get one free government we have got – we will have no option but to show them what we are capable of” – David Handley, Farmers For Actoin chairman

“It is money back first and then we start talking about the future, because there is no future with no money. Cancel your holidays from 1st August, because you have come here and that proves we could do something else if necessary” – Handley

“Government ministers can’t fix prices and I don’t believe we should either” – UK Minister for Agriculture Jim Paice

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“I want to emphasise that I believe a voluntary code is better than the possibility of compulsory contracts under EU regulation… I have met with both sides. We are tantalisingly close to an agreement on a voluntary code. Both sides have moved a very long way” – Paice

“The dairy sector needs a permanent fix. It needs a longer-term solution to the imbalance of power… we need the Dairy Contracts Act of 2013. In the meantime, the best and final compromise is a voluntary code of best practice” – Raymond