With seasonal bonuses about to be paid, the UFU says dairy processors must be transparent about how prices are calculated. Dairy committee chairman, William Irvine, says bonus payments cannot be used to mask changes to the base milk price, which the UFU insists could not be justified.
Dairy markets are not easy to read. Fat prices rose in the summer, cheese and powders saw stable returns. However, since September negative sentiments have hit markets and weakening cream prices have driven down butter. Despite that, Mr Irvine says there is no case for any change to base milk prices adding: “Dairy fat prices are still ahead of their twelve-month average and there has been limited activity on markets.
“Christmas demand could change that and the falls now are likely to be temporary. On that basis processors should give farmers the benefit of the doubt, by leaving prices where they are. Above all they must be transparent about how prices and seasonal bonuses are calculated”.
