Brussels, 31/07/2015 (Agence Europe) - Four milk producers' organisations, two French - the OPL and Apli - and two German - the BDM and the AbL - have spoken out in a press release dated Thursday 30 July against the rising tension between the two countries' milk producers.
All four are members of the European Milk Board (EMB) and express their support for action in response to current hardship, while dissociating themselves from “statements blaming producers in another country”. They point out that, on both sides of the border, the same problems are being faced and condemn “any attempt to pit milk producers against one another”, the only consequence of which would be to “divert attention from the real problem”. They issue a call to all European farmers to “join the fight”.
The four organisations argue that “without a proper legal framework, producers will not receive a fair price for their milk”. They propose that “a crisis management system be introduced which, whenever a crisis is on the horizon, can restore balance in the market quickly and preventively” (our translation).
The EMB wants production reduced. Elsewhere, the EMB says this “intolerable situation was triggered off by a milk policy banking on exports and overproduction”. It proposes a crisis management mechanism based on reducing production as the way out of the current situation and calls on the Agriculture Council of 7 September to lay the foundations for such a mechanism (see other article).
In the EMB's view, “artificially propping up the price would only stimulate production and make the situation worse”. “One-off campaigns, such as in France, where a price rise from below 30 cents to 34 cents a litre of milk was agreed - yet ignoring the market situation - are only superficial solutions”, it says. (Lionel Changeur)