Results of a new survey carried out by the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) have revealed that over one in five dairy farmers (23%) are unsure if their business will continue producing milk beyond 2025.
The NFU Dairy Intentions Survey asked dairy farmers to detail their plans to increase, decrease, or stop milk production and the main reasons why.
Out of 590 survey respondents, 87% said they were concerned abut the impact of government regulation, with feed prices (84%), energy prices (83%) and cash flow and profitability (80%) listed as other key factors that would curtail milk supplies.
The survey, which was carried out last month, also revealed that 9% of producers believe they are “likely” to stop producing milk by 2025 – up 7% from last year.
The NFU said that Britain’s dairy farmers are being forced to seriously think about their future due to concerns over insufficient returns, volatile markets and the scale of on-farm investment.
Dairy farmers
91% of dairy farmers said the main factor to them increasing milk production would be the scale of investment needed for things such as suitable slurry storage to ensure their farms are compliant.
NFU dairy board chair Michael Oakes said the survey results show that Britain’s dairy farmers are struggling.
“It’s clear that significant inflationary pressures combined with below cost of production prices are continuing to put the resilience of British dairy farming businesses under threat,” he said.
“We are now facing a crisis of confidence among Britain’s dairy farmers.
“The results of this survey show that, now more than ever, we need resilient and collaborative dairy supply chains.”
Oakes said it is vital that the trend of “boom or bust” is reversed and that investment into supply chains is made.
“New industry-wide regulation on contracts, expected to be introduced later this year, must support fairer, more transparent and accountable supply chains. But regulation isn’t a silver bullet,” he said.
“With increasing global demand for British dairy, we know that the long-term future is bright for our sector.
“To ensure we maximise this potential, it’s imperative that government continues to work with us to ensure we have the right environmental, regulatory and trade framework in place to support the production of high quality, nutritious and sustainable food.”
