Milk Price Tracker

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
Not if it costs 72p to produce it.
the only real way, to increase profit, is to reduce COP, which is very difficult, but retailers have worked out the best 25% of producers costs, and if anyone thinks they will pay, any more than they absolutely have to, is dreaming. Prices rise, when product is short, and they have to compete, to purchase what they need. Even then, its the least possible amount, regardless of what it actually costs to produce it. Up till the present day, retailers have been able to source, all the milk they need, at their price, and despite all the facts and figures, showing COP as more than their price, they continue to receive the milk, they require, with no problems. If, you were in their shoes, with producers telling you, they can't produce it, at their price, but you could source all you need, without any problem, what would you say ?

To add further insult, up till now, when milk has been 'short', and they up the price, all we do, as farmers, is increase production, and then, milk is no longer 'short', so they drop the price, that scenario, has happened time, and time again, and each time we have to run faster, to stay in the same place. And there is only dairy farmers to blame for that, we never seem to learn the lesson. For absolute certainty, there are dairy farmers, working out, how to increase their production, on todays rising prices, how much to buy more cows, put up new buildings/parlour, take on more land etc, heard of 1 farm, bidding £260ac, and not getting it, which is all fine. So, more milk, price goes down, then it is most certainly not all right.. And, who is to blame ?

I will say, for once, there might not be enough incentive to increase production, at 70ppl though, farmers will jump. So, the only certain way to increase profit, is through cutting COP. And that is hard.
 

Dancingbrave

Member
Mixed Farmer
the only real way, to increase profit, is to reduce COP, which is very difficult, but retailers have worked out the best 25% of producers costs, and if anyone thinks they will pay, any more than they absolutely have to, is dreaming. Prices rise, when product is short, and they have to compete, to purchase what they need. Even then, its the least possible amount, regardless of what it actually costs to produce it. Up till the present day, retailers have been able to source, all the milk they need, at their price, and despite all the facts and figures, showing COP as more than their price, they continue to receive the milk, they require, with no problems. If, you were in their shoes, with producers telling you, they can't produce it, at their price, but you could source all you need, without any problem, what would you say ?

To add further insult, up till now, when milk has been 'short', and they up the price, all we do, as farmers, is increase production, and then, milk is no longer 'short', so they drop the price, that scenario, has happened time, and time again, and each time we have to run faster, to stay in the same place. And there is only dairy farmers to blame for that, we never seem to learn the lesson. For absolute certainty, there are dairy farmers, working out, how to increase their production, on todays rising prices, how much to buy more cows, put up new buildings/parlour, take on more land etc, heard of 1 farm, bidding £260ac, and not getting it, which is all fine. So, more milk, price goes down, then it is most certainly not all right.. And, who is to blame ?

I will say, for once, there might not be enough incentive to increase production, at 70ppl though, farmers will jump. So, the only certain way to increase profit, is through cutting COP. And that is hard.
Everyone does realize my 70ppl thing was a joke don't they ?
 

bar718

Member
I see Fonterra has lowered its forecast for this season. The Chinese lockdown, Russia and Sri Lanka seem to be getting the blame.
Get to the end of the season and lower the price :unsure:

Funny how different countries do things, this thread is full of prices for future months, while our lot haven't decided what to pay for milk produced months ago.
I think with the market effects that you mentioned the future months for us will soon not look as rosey as those factors also play a part in what our milk price will be.
 

Mouser

Member
Location
near Belfast
I see Fonterra has lowered its forecast for this season. The Chinese lockdown, Russia and Sri Lanka seem to be getting the blame.
Get to the end of the season and lower the price :unsure:

Funny how different countries do things, this thread is full of prices for future months, while our lot haven't decided what to pay for milk produced months ago.
Are your inputs sky high due to high European gas prices and Ukraine war or some other excuse?
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
Everyone does realize my 70ppl thing was a joke don't they ?
Yes
but it is exactly what would happen, if it did,
and you never know, ................................................................................................................................
it might, and pigs might actually learn to fly.
 
Last edited:

Sid

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
South Molton
I see Fonterra has lowered its forecast for this season. The Chinese lockdown, Russia and Sri Lanka seem to be getting the blame.
Get to the end of the season and lower the price :unsure:

Funny how different countries do things, this thread is full of prices for future months, while our lot haven't decided what to pay for milk produced months ago.
There are going to be some very expensive products sat in store this year waiting to mature or find a route to market.


I hope I'm wrong but there could be casualties.
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
I think with the market effects that you mentioned the future months for us will soon not look as rosey as those factors also play a part in what our milk price will be.
l don't think any of us can predict what will happen, in the coming months, mainly down to a nutter, that no-one can 2nd guess, those options vary from nuclear, general, war, or an assassination, hopefully the latter.
Whatever happens, there are things we do know. Grain supplies from Russia and Ukraine are going to effected for the next 2 years or more, due to an embargo on Russian, and damage they have caused to infrastructure in Ukraine, crops not planted/harvested etc.
Energy prices will continue to be high, Europe sold its principals for cheap Russian gas, due to Merkel - who has been very quiet since she left, funny that.
China is looking to increase its area of influence, against the interests of those countries, in that area, and including the 'west'.
And food appears to be short, versus an increasing demand, the result of both retailers and guv policy, of cheap food, killing off our industry, across the globe. Sea lanes, for imported goods, are still severely impacted by covid, and will take several years, to return to normal.
Or simply put, the world is in a very different place, than it was 3yrs ago.
and in a buggers muddle. The world order is changing, and change brings problems.
 

Shuffle

Member
Mixed Farmer
There are going to be some very expensive products sat in store this year waiting to mature or find a route to market.


I hope I'm wrong but there could be casualties.

Agree entirely, with everything this high there is suddenly a long way to fall. Been some discussion here on people increasing production, but it rather depends on what your comparing against. I'm up about 25% on last year, but still about 5-10% down on 3 years ago, before TB, Covid and staffing side swiped us. I've no interest in going any bigger from here though. Would need mega investment in scaling up infrastructure and that is mega expensive, and that's before we start on the problem of staffing the job.
 

kiwi pom

Member
Location
canterbury NZ
Are your inputs sky high due to high European gas prices and Ukraine war or some other excuse?
Other than fuel, which has gone up a lot, I don't really know. Getting everything in and out of the country has been tricky for a while. Generally people are saying everything's gone up.
Cindy says its all go come July as she's fully opening the borders.
I think everyone's forgotten we're here though.
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 79 42.9%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 63 34.2%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 16.3%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 6 3.3%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

  • 1,287
  • 1
As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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