Dairy Summit is to bring long-awaited rescue for farmers – MDR

As the Federal Minister of Agriculture on Thursday to his constituency office is in Swiss francs, an unfriendly welcome awaits him. Since two weeks there campieren dairy farmers with the cow Cecily. You want to make the CSU-man Christian Schmidt attention to their plight. With an impressive manner. That more and more milk is produced on their farm, have a reason, declared him a farmer:

Why am I doing this? To distribute the fixed costs that we have to produce more milk. That is, we try to produce more milk each day. And do the other farmers also. And what is the end? The amount is more and more and we earn less and less.

Rational market behavior looks different. It speaks despair. 20 cents per kilo of milk pay some dairies just, more than double the farmers would need to make ends meet.

Even the guest list of the crisis summit ensures dispute

From Therefore, will be held today in Berlin the Ministry of Agriculture a dairy summit instead. But even the composition of those who sit at the table, ensures irritations. Originally already last week should be culminated with the agriculture ministers of the countries. After the postponement to Monday was the offloaded again. You’ve known the position of Priska Hinz and Co, said the house of Federal Minister Schmidt. The position is, down to the amount of milk.

For the farmers must have a say of the German Farmers’ Association today. Secretary Bernhard Krüsken: “At the moment are not just the little ones in trouble and in a really existence-threatening situation, but it is really all enterprises.”

4 reasons for the low milk prices

• Higher offer: After the end of the EU milk quota quantity barrier, farmers can produce much desired. In some EU countries such as Ireland and Poland the quantities swelled loud Bauernverband significantly. And even in the United States or New Zealand increased production

• Weaker demand: The economy in promising markets is weakening – as in China and in countries which are heavily oil exports. depend. This also slows down the business with dairy products

• Political barriers. Russia has imposed as a response to EU sanctions for Ukraine crisis an import ban on agricultural products. This leaves more milk on the EU market, which prices weakens.

• Price pressure of trade: Falling world market prices register the supermarket chains, signing contracts with dairies. This was followed by several rounds of price reduction in the refrigerated section. Critics say has long been the market power of a few large retail giants.

Not Registered are other representatives of dairy farmers as the Small farmers who do not feel represented by the farmers’ association. For Ottmar Ilchmann therefore traveled to Berlin on Friday – he could, after all, for a preliminary discussion with the Secretary of State. Peak light, so to speak. Reconciled has him not: “We are definitely on Monday to the table The organizations that meet on Monday, those are precisely those who have the crisis in which we find ourselves now, caused mainly..”