The launch of the dairy code of practice at the Livestock 2012 event in Birmingham was welcomed by the Farmers’ Union of Wales today.
The FUW has consistently reiterated publicly and to MPs the importance of eliminating unfair contracts and the need to establish more balanced terms and conditions in producer/processor contracts.
This included FUW support for the Milk Contracts Early Day Motion in Parliament in March 2012 put forward by Carmarthen East and Dinefwr MP Jonathan Edwards.
More recently, the union also threw its weight behind the concept of a UK Dairy Farmers’ Together umbrella group which will allow collaboration and communication between producer groups.
Following the launch of the code of practice, FUW milk and dairy produce committee chairman Dei Davies said: “We are generally pleased with the finalised code of practice and will now seek to ensure that this code is backed up with proper policing, monitoring and evaluation.
“Farmers should have a fair balance of power with their milk purchasers and contracts should be formed in such a way that milk prices will not be dropped without sufficient advance notice.
“Elements of the code, such as shorter termination periods, the abolition of retrospective price adjustments and the inclusion of a market-based pricing formula will aid in shifting the balance of power back in the direction of the producer.
“We are now prepared to give the code of practice a chance to work for farmers in Wales.
“However, we know that Welsh government officials have already begun working on draft legislation for dairy contracts in Wales. If the new voluntary code of conduct fails then the FUW will be looking closer at the benefits of legislation.”
Union officials recently met with Mr Edwards at the union’s Carmarthenshire office branch and further discussed the mechanisms by which the code of practice could be monitored and how contract legislation could be implemented in Wales if necessary.
Mr Davies, a dairy farmer in Holywell, added: "In the long term it is essential for all those involved in the supply chain to work together to ensure stability within the industry.
"The forming of Producer Organisations, adoption of a Code of Conduct and the development of acceptable contracts all have an important role to play in doing this.”