Farmers welcome Muller's milk price hike
Shropshire dairy giant Muller Wiseman today revealed it is to increase the price it pays farmers for their milk – a move which has been welcomed by campaigners.
The company, based in Market Drayton, announced it is to increase its price by 0.5p per litre to 29.5p per litre on December 1. It will then be followed by a 1p per litre increase to 30.5p per litre on February 1.
It will be offered to all suppliers except those in Tesco and Sainsbury's supply groups, which have their own pricing arrangements.
David Handley, chairman of campaign group Farmers For Action, said he welcomed the move – but there is still work to be done before dairy farmers begin to make a profit.
He said: "Any money that can be put back into the industry is good but our commitment to 31.5p per litre has not changed, we have got a long way to go yet."
Roddy Catto, chairman of the Muller Wiseman Milk Partnership Board which represents farmers that supply the company, negotiated the new price.
He said: "We are pleased with the progress being made and with the outcome of our discussions on this and other projects.
"There is a shared determination to work in partnership to the benefit of current and future dairy farmer suppliers and the group as it invests to grow and we feel that this increase is a good signal of intent."
Müller UK & Ireland's chief executive Ronald Kers added: "We want to return a higher milk price to farmers so that we can ensure security of supply for our customers in an environment where off farm milk production is dropping.
"The elected Müller Wiseman Milk Partnership farmer board deserves great credit for the manner in which it has approached this issue.
"The farmer board has worked tirelessly with us to arrive at a decision.
"We share the view that our collaborative work on this and the Müller Wisemilk Initiative augurs well for the future.
"We are determined to be the leading dairy company in the UK and Ireland and the preferred home for milk produced by Britain's dairy farmers
"We will work closely with the farmer board to this end."
