By dairy commodity officer Chris Osbourne.
Dairy Roundtable – On 27 June, UFU Dairy Chairman participated in the monthly roundtable meeting of UK dairy experts, including UK farming unions, RABDF, Provision Trade Federation, AHDB and Dairy UK. The meeting heard about the continued impact of the Ukraine crisis with emphasis on the implication for animal feed prices.
Dairy Red Tractor Board – UFU Dairy Board representative Mervyn Gordon attended the first face to face meeting of the Dairy Red Tractor Board in over 2 years in Birmingham on 28 June. The agenda focused on the fall-out from the BBC Panorama programme, the recent Technical Advisory Committee report (with a focus on repeated milk sample failures). The UFU raised continued unresolved concerns regarding the lack of Red Tractor on dairy products on shelves and the increasing bureaucracy linked to on-farm inspections.
Renewable NI Programme for Government Launch – On 29 June, Deputy President, Rural Enterprise Chairman and Senior Policy Officer attended the launch of Renewable NI ‘Programme for Government’. Their report highlights that we have only five years to get enough renewables through our planning system to meet our 80% by 2030 renewables target. The roundtable discussion which accompanied the launch focused on the need for urgent action to address planning concerns, which in its current state will inhibit energy transition in Northern Ireland. Wind and solar farms planning twice as long in the system as in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland.
ASDA – In the latest of a series of meeting with the major retailers, Deputy President, Dairy Chairman and Senior Policy Officer met with representatives from ASDA; Michael McCandless (Senior Buying Manager), Joe McDonald (Corporate Affairs Manager) and Cathy Elliott (Buying Manager). The meeting discussed the dairy market, including the impact of rising costs, food price inflation and there was a lengthy discussion on Red Tractor.
