Danish dairy producers visit Cumbria and Lancashire

Three members of the Danish Milk Producers Association visited the North West of England this week to compare farming practices and to find common ground with NFU members when negotiating milk price with processors.

The vast majority of dairy farmers in Denmark sell their milk to Arla, so the three Danish farmers were keen to find out about the relationships NFU members have with Arla in the UK. They also wanted to find out more about farmer run cooperatives such as Dairy Farmers of Britain.

The Danish delegation visited six farms in Cumbria and Lancashire on Sunday 25 January and Monday 26 January. They were escorted around the two counties by NFU Kendal group secretary Derek Lomax, NFU Carlisle group secretary Nick Utting and NFU Lancaster member David Halhead who farms at Newland Home Farm in Bay Horse.

After the visit, Mr Lomax said: "There were a number of interesting points made by our peers from Denmark. We have dramatically different farming systems yet we have similar problems. Some good contacts have been made and I’m glad the NFU has been able to facilitate this meeting. North West dairy farmers and their Danish counterparts will now share their negotiating experiences with each other."

Dairy farmer David Halhead added: "We operate in a global market and it’s essential farmers from all parts of Europe solve common problems together. The milk price of the visiting three Danish farmers dropped by an estimated 4 pence per litre recently, so they are in exactly the same boat as me."