APPENDIX 22
Letter to James Gray, MP, from Mr Peter
Gantlett
Plight of dairy industry
|
| My profit | Milk
| Calf
| Barren cows
|
|
|
| 1998-99 £50,000 (FORECAST)
| 18p/lt
| £40
| £250
|
| 1997-98 £40,000 |
|
|
|
| 1996-97 £70,000 |
|
|
|
| 1995-96 £100,000 |
26p/lt |
£120 |
£500 |
|
(I am fortunate in that I don't pay a rent or borrow money.)
Why has my profit gone up this year? I have stopped spending money
on investments, cut out casual labour and increased amount of
milk.
I need to spend £50,000 in the next few months on improving
worn out plant and machinery, difficult to justify at the moment,
but you either keep investing or get out, gone are the days of
dog and stick farming.
On the bright side. I am in a buying group of 26 local farmers
and we make significant savings on our inputs. More farmers should
be encouraged to do so. Wilts County Council are going to raise
capital and ring fence rents to fund capital improvements on their
holdings (largely thanks to Nancy Bryant). Small farmers are at
a disadvantage when it comes to capital expenditure, this is where
economies of scale really work. The Select Committee would do
well to investigate this area and see if we are being disadvantaged
by having to invest in plant and equipment to meet environmental
and animal welfare controls our competitors don't have to.
17 June 1999
|
