Dairy farmers protesting in Cheshire over milk prices

More proposed challenges are reportedly being planned in Clitheroe in Lancashire and Cheshire.

Co-organiser Robert Mason, 25, said: “I’m the fourth generation on our family farm in Garstang, but if it carries on like this, we’ll be selling up”. However, that doesn’t mean we should stop trying as organisations and as individuals.

Farmers blockaded a number of local supermarkets, as well as several in GB, in recent days to highlight their grievances. So we thought we’d go along to the retailer.

Wells MP James Heappey said he backed the farmers, and went to the protest to lend his support.

“We really want to raise awareness of the issue, and to show our anger”. British lamb is in its prime right now and I, personally, find it very concerning that some retailers are continuing to promote New Zealand lamb when we have prime lamb, in season, on our doorstep.

Farmers across the UK have followed French demonstrations by staging a series of protests showing dismay at the current state of farmgate prices.

Police said the incident in Yate had been a peaceful protest and that no crime had been committed.

But protests began in the UK this week after three major milk processors – Arla, First Milk and Dairy Crest – all said at the weekend they would cut the price they pay farmers. “Milk production is one of Scotland’s most important industries and we need to do what we can to support it and ensure its future”. “The understandable frustration of farmers is starting to spill over into actions that no one wants”.

Mr Lochhead said buyers need to be “more transparent” about the price they pay dairy farmers. Today they are getting no more than 19 or 20 pence per litre.

Although farming is not Turnbull’s sole income, she understands the difficulty that lamb producers are facing. “In all the supermarkets the support we received from the public was great, but the staff were just shocked”.

Global dairy prices have been falling for months as good weather has helped boost production just as demand has been dented by a Russian ban on importing dairy goods from Europe and a decline in sales to China.

Speaking after the meeting at Department of Agriculture and Rural Development headquarters at Stormont, the minister said: “This is a global crisis caused by a range of worldwide market and exchange rate factors”.

The group spent more than £100 buying the milk, and also kept some in trollies for around half-an-hour to spoil them, so they could not be sold.

They cleared the shelves of milk in the Tesco on Castlewellan Rd, Banbridge.

Darren Blackhurst, commercial director at Morrisons group, was quoted as saying the company try to “pass on” lower prices to customers where possible. Any reduction in the retail price is absorbed by Aldi and is not passed on to our processors.

Handley said: “I think a line has been drawn in the sand, and am sure I speak on behalf of the majority of farmers, when I say we are not going to be bullied by British retailers”.

In a video of the protest, a woman says: “We’re doing the Milk Trolley Challenge”.

FARMERS’ leaders have urged milk price protestors to demonstrate within the law as further action is expected around the UK.

They’re more used to filling the shelves than emptying them, but dairy farmers launched a people-power campaign tonight over modest milk prices.