APPENDIX 22
Letter to James Gray MP from Mr Alec Glass
I am writing with some details of our dairy unit
at Foxham, showing particularly a comparison of main cost and
receipts for the year ending March 1997 and the most current up-to-date
figures for the 12 months up to the end of May 1999.
We are a family partnership with myself, my wife
and two sons. The farm is tenanted and totals 388 acres, of which
100 acres is down to cereal production. The rest, 288 acres, is
used to support a herd of Holstein Friesians, currently 170 dairy
cows and 120 young stock of various ages to enter the dairy herd.
We employ one tractor driver full time and also have
a part time assistant herdsman for six milkings a week.
The relevant major income figures for the two twelve
month periods are as follows:
|
| 12 months to March 1997
| 12 months to March 1999
|
|
| Milk | £243,159
| av. 26.24 ppl | £216,207
| av. 19.15 ppl |
| Calves | £5,820
| av. £97 | £2,940
| av. £49 |
| Barrens | £14,100
| av. £470 | £8,880
| av. £296 |
|
| £263,079
| | £227,947
| |
|
Over these two years the herd numbers have increased from 141
at March 1997 to 167 at May 1999 and yield per cow has increased
from 6,060 litres to 6,874 litres. This means there has been a
requirement of 293,000 litres of quota to lease in at an average
price at 7p, ie £20,510. Labour costs have been reduced over
the period by not replacing a full time herdsman who came to retiring
age. This has saved about £15,000. A reduced cost for seed
has resulted in spending about the same on feed for the increased
number of cows and increased yield.
MILK PRICE
Our current milk price of 19.12 ppl is probably near the average
which has been achieved by most dairy herds. Some with lower constituent
quality and lower litreage will have received much less, while
some who have sold direct to dairies in particular milk fields
will have received more.
We have sold our milk to a co-operative, Milk Marque, because
it is our strong belief that we cannot manipulate world prices
for milk and dairy products, so that the only way in which we
can regain a reasonable return for our milk is to get closer to
the consumer and retain a reasonable share of the end product
price. We cannot continue to give a large share of that price
to shareholders of large national and international companies.
For the future, calf prices are set to drop when the slaughter
scheme is stopped in July and the price of barren cows is subject
to the continuation of the OTMS on an easing of the export ban.
With all these price pressures, few dairy units will be able to
make any profit.
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