28th August 2006

The Citizen reports that cattle testing is reducing cattle TB. This is no surprise to those of us who argued for this rather than culling badgers. We welcome the Governments belated decision to listen to the scientists and not go-ahead with a cull. They must stick to that decision, but TB is just one problem that is hitting dairy farmers.

British farmers get the lowest price in old Europe for their milk, yet absurdly for a country rich in grass there is a balance of payments deficit of over £800 million per year for milk products.

Our farmers are often getting less for their pinter than it costs to produce, while supermarkets share of the price has risen (i). Absurdly bottled 'natural' water in supermarkets is more expensive than milk. Tony Blair is failing to keep his promise, made in 2002, to break the 'armlock' of the supermarkets. Since April of that year to last October, the number of dairy farmers in England and Wales fell from 19,200 to 14,200.

On top of this farmers are being encouraged to be more 'efficient' by keeping cows indoors the whole year fed on silage. Cows are not milk manufacturing machines. Further intensification of milk production can only exacerbate problems like TB (ii).

It seems it soon wont be long before cows in our fields will be a thing of the past. We urgently need to curb supermarket power and restore some sanity to British farming.

Cllr. Philip Booth, Stroud District Green Party.


Notes:

(i) The Ecologist July/August 2006 edition.

(ii) See Glos Green party news release