NEARLY one in 10 dairy farms across England and Wales have closed in the last three years, an industry body has reported, with North Yorkshire the hardest hit area.

More than 1,000 have closed since June 2013, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).

North Yorkshire lost 89 farms, the highest total of any county, while Berkshire saw the greatest rate of decline with a third of farms closing. The board said it was concerned by the milk price paid to farmers.

It is estimated that dairy farmers are paid 10p a litre less than it costs to produce, despite protests by the National Farmers' Union last year over the price they were paid for milk.

The board said North Yorkshire had lost more than one in seven farms over the period, while Berkshire had lost seven of its 22 farms.

In total, 1,002 farms have closed over the three-year period.

This is part of a wider crisis that has hit the dairy industry hard over recent years.

Milk prices have fallen by around 30 per cent from 2013 to 2015.

There is also uncertainty as to what the impact of the UK leaving the European Union will have on the industry.

The UK exports a huge amount of its agricultural goods to the EU, as well as receiving large subsidies to support the industry.

There are however some in the business who are hopeful that the fortunes of some dairy farmers will turn around soon.

In an initiative launched at this week's Great Yorkshire Show, in Harrogate, shoppers will soon be given the chance to pay more for their milk in a supermarket. The dairy co-operative, Arla, launched a new scheme which will add 25p on to four pints of milk that are on sale in Asda, which has its headquarters in Leeds, with the money returned directly to dairy farmers.

The revenue generated will be shared between the co-operative’s 12,700 farmer owners, including the 2,700-strong membership in Britain.

The launch comes in the wake of research that revealed almost two-thirds of consumers would pay more for dairy products if they knew the extra money goes back to farmers.