THE National Farmers’ Union (NFU) dairy team has met more than 200 dairy farmers in the North of England as part of its work to develop a new strategy for dairying.

Meetings were held over three days between Scarborough and Carlisle.

Mansel Raymond, NFU dairy board chairman, said: “It has been a tough 12 months for us all, but I’m pleased to say that the dairy industry seems to be turning a corner, with some record prices being paid for milk and cheese.

“The bad news is that the cost of producing a litre of milk is also at a record high, which means that many dairy farmers are yet again struggling to make a decent living from producing milk.

“Our meetings have focused on how we can address some of the problems in the dairy supply chain, how we can unlock the huge potential that exists to produce more milk for markets at home and abroad and how we can develop milk contracts that are fit for the 21st Century, which dairy farmers so desperately need.”

Russell Bowman, NFU North West dairy board chairman, said the EU Commission’s dairy package had sparked particular interest.

He said: “There are some exciting proposals that could make a real difference to the way we sell our milk and negotiate with milk buyers.

“For example, many dairy farmers would like to sell their milk to more than one buyer and have more influence over the price they receive.”