Brussels, 25/08/2004 (Agence Europe) - On 27 August (date of adoption of the measure by the written procedure), the European Commission will formally decide to bring forward, to 16 October, payment of the premium and additional payments for the dairy industry. The payment of the aid would normally have been made between 1 December 2004 and 30 June 2005. Early payment was requested by a series of Member States (particularly the Netherlands) due to the fact that a serious slump in the price of milk on the market had caused a destabilisation of the situation for producers and a risk of deterioration of their financial situation, explained the Commission. The Commission notes that the payment of the aid, designed to compensate for a reduction in the dairy price intervention programmes, cannot be made ahead of 16 October since it will be incorporated in the 2005 financial year for the EU farm budget (which begins on 16 October). The total aid to be paid early amounts to EUR 1.390 billion. On 26 May 2004, the Milk and Dairy Product Management Committee came out in favour of early payment.