Milk production gap still growing

Analysis of milk production data for the year 2008/9 shows that the larger British farmers have increased their share of the nation’s milk supply to just under sixty percent, although the number of larger farms has fallen by 384 since 2007/8.

DairyCo analysis of RPA data for 2008/9 revealed that 3,484 dairy farms, representing 28% of the industry, produced over one million litres of milk. This accounts for 59% of the British milk supply in 2008/9. Compared to 2007/08 the number of farms producing over one million litres has fallen by 384, a drop of almost 10%.

Further analysis shows that since the 2004/5 milk year, farms producing over two million litres a year have increased the proportion of national milk supply they contribute from 14% to 23%.

In 2008/9 there were 5,008 farms, 40% of the industry, producing less than 500,000 litres of milk per year. These farms contributed 13% of total British supply, compared to 18% in the 2004/5 milk year, when there were 3,433 more farms of this size.

Figures differ by country with Scotland showing the largest change. In England, 7% of dairy farmers produce over two million litres a year, while in Wales the figure is 3%, accounting for 24% and 15% respectively of their country’s 2008/9 milk supply.

In Scotland, 9% of dairy farms, a total of 110, produce over two million litres a year, supplying over one quarter of the country’s yearly total. The number of farms producing over two million litres per year in Scotland has more than doubled since 2004/5, and their share of the country’s total milk supply has increased from 12% to 26%. Data also shows that the 28% of Scottish farmers, a total of 360, produced less than 500,000 litres in 2008/9, contributing 9% of the total Scottish milk supply.