The NFU has called for milk buyers to come forward with a milk price rise. NFU chairman Mansel Raymond says price rises across the board were needed to ensure farmers had the confidence and the cash to ensure the long-term future of their business. “This summer the UK sat at the bottom of the EU price league table 4ppl below the average,” he says. “Today, despite farm gate price rises of between 1ppl and 2ppl this autumn, the average UK farmer is still only seventh from the bottom of the league table and 3.25ppl below the average price.

“However, there is some good news. Some farmer confidence has been built over the past six months resulting from recent price rises and a strong reported demand for dairy products, in domestic and global markets. This has given farmers cause to look to the future. Prices are starting to move in the right direction but there is still some way to go to deliver the profits farmers need in order to invest.”