Payments worth £2.4 million to Scottish dairy farmers will arrive in farmers’ bank accounts in the coming days, the Scottish government has confirmed.
Dairy farmers patience has been wearing thin as market indicators for dairy commodities soar to levels not seen since the highs of 2013.
The payments will be seen as a much-awaited move. As announced last month all applicants will also now receive an increased payment rate to ensure all available EU funding is distributed.
The funding is targeted towards the hardest hit dairy farmers.
It is hoped the payments will encourage the uptake of milk recording and production profiling techniques, which provide dairy farmers with the information required to help make informed business decisions.
Scotland's Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing said: “The recent downward pressure on gate prices badly affected our dairy sector, which is why I took the decision to reopen the EU Adjustment Aid Scheme window to ensure that as many farmers as possible were able to fully benefit from all available EU support.
“As promised last month, if any funding remained unclaimed by the end of the application period, I would increase all the current payment rates to ensure our dairy farmers received the maximum level of support.”
Anger at farm level
NFU Scotland has said that farmgate prices have, as yet, failed to respond, leading to anger and frustration at farm level.
Actual Milk Price Equivalent (AMPE) and Milk for Cheese Equivalent (MCVE) track the basic wholesale commodity prices for butter, skimmed milk powder, mild cheese and cheese by-products.
The union says that is a 'staggering' increase that has yet to be fully reflected in the price farmers receive for their milk.
Farmgate prices by comparison have risen by only 7p in the same period to an average of 26 or 27p per litre.
NFU Scotland’s Milk Committee Chairman, James Rankin said: “By anyone’s arithmetic, this does not add up.
“Milk buyers failing to pass on market returns is clearly unacceptable in any circumstance, but particularly at a time when dairy farmers are recovering from the deepest price squeeze many have ever experienced.
“There is no reasonable excuse. Production is muted, demand is strong and while the processing and retail sectors can cite concerns about oversupply and being competitive, there is no reason to hold back prices at this time, other than to manage their balance sheets and risk at the expense of farmers.”
