Sainsbury’s new announcement of a 6 million investment to help dairy farmers with a long-term support scheme.
From next month, dairy farmers will now be paid 1p extra per litre. With this new payment “on top of the independently calculated cost of production price of milk.” Sainsbury’s is hoping this will result in farmers receiving up to £27,000 extra per year.
With over 260 farmers within ‘The Sainsbury’s Dairy Development Group’ (SDDG) the rise in dairy production costs poses a risk for future investments for farmers. However, with Sainsbury’s investment plan they are hoping to give the SDDG a sense of security for any long-term changes.
Sainsbury’s have also suggested that £1.7 million of the investment will be used for a sustainability bonus.With dairy farmers reducing their carbon footprint by monitoring their use of fertilisers and using sustainable feed will allow them to wreak the benefits of the bonus and push the farming industry towards a greener future.
Gavin Hodgson, the Director of Agriculture, Aquaculture and Horticulture at Sainsbury’s has said: “the dairy farming industry is becoming increasingly challenging, and we recognise the responsibility we have as a retailer to support farmers and the need for continuous investment in this sector.”
“We are proud of our continued investment into the Sainsbury’s Dairy Development Group and are confident our £6m annual investment will help farmers to plan for a long term and sustainable future. In turn, we hope this will also provide surety of supply for our customers as we continue to champion British milk now and for the future.”
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