Farm crisis talks as milk price cut hits profits

Dairy farmers in Shropshire could be forced to quit the industry amid concerns for its future, it was claimed today following an emergency meeting.

It comes after Robert Wiseman Dairies announced a cut in the price it will pay for milk.

Concerns were raised at an emergency meeting with representatives from the National Farmers Union yesterday.

Farmers claimed they were being forced to 'give away' their produce and fear other companies will follow Wiseman's lead.

The dairy firm announced last week it was cutting 1.7p per litre in the price it pays farmers for milk from August 1. It follows a 2p per litre cut last month.

About half a dozen farmers met the NFU's regional director, John Mercer.

"There is a lot of anger about the price cut and a very real concern for the future of farming," Mr Mercer said. "The concern is how many dairy farmers we are going to have left in the industry in the next six months. Our views have been passed to the national dairy board.

"We have discussed ways forward but we need to know what other processors will do, what this leads to and if it is a sustainable business."

There are 449 dairy farmers in Shropshire, according to figures by Dairy Co, but it is not known how many supply Robert Wiseman.

The Glasgow-based company was brought out by Muller, based in Market Drayton, in a £280 million deal in January.