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British Cattle Breeders Conference


Tackling the threats to milk consumption and empowering staff were just two of the diverse topics covered at this year’s British Cattle Breeders Conference, Telford. Jonathan Long reports


NON-DAIRY CHALLENGE GROWING T


he challenge for UK dairy farmers is broader than just global market volatility, according to Dairy UK chief executive Judith


Bryans.


Speaking at the British Cattle Breeders Conference in January Dr Bryans said that while the growing world population was a significant opportunity, the rise of dairy alternatives was an increasing challenge. “Alpro, manufacturer of soya, almond, coconut and rice drinks, is now the third largest milk brand in the market on its own merits and more products of this type are entering the dairy space. “These are no longer products for ‘weird people’ but are in the mainstream market and are entering sectors where traditionally dairy has been dominant, such as the breakfast cereals market,” she explained.


“It is probably fair to say that as a sector we haven’t taken the threat these products posed seriously enough. “Additionally, the growing shift from the traditional breakfast to snacking in the morning could pose another threat. At the moment 40% of UK liquid milk consumption is on cereals. As consumers move


INNOVATION VITAL FOR FUTURE


Family farms are a hotbed of innovation and collaboration, according to Nick Green of Somerset-based dairy and arable farmers Alvis Bros.


“Farmers have always innovated right from the outset and in future this innovation, coupled with collaboration with others in the supply chain, will be essential.”


Mr Green said the Alvis Bros business had developed from a cheese making business to being a diverse business which included pig units and a contracting operation. “The business moved in to cheese production as it was felt enough wasn’t being paid for the milk.


“From there the Alvis family started feeding whey to pigs and as a result had pig slurry to use on the crops. “Now the business produces 4500t of cheese every year for a wide consumer base and rears 18,000 pigs a year on a contract rearing system.”


But Mr Green said just because someone owned a business it didn’t mean they had to manage it. “As an industry we need to use the skills of our workforce better and empower managers to act on their own initiative. We need to empower staff and create structures that allow the freedom to get things done,” he added.





The increasing presence of non- dairy products in the dairy market is a big challenge for the sector





increasingly towards breakfast on the run we need to target it and ensure it is an opportunity not a threat,” added Dr Bryans.


“There are a number of ways to achieve this, firstly through cooperation with the breakfast product industry and secondly through the development of on-the-go yoghurt products.” Looking ahead Dr Bryans said the last three decades had seen worldwide demand rise 50% and demand in Asia jump by 300%. “Global demand is rising by 2-2.5% every year and we need to capitalise on this. I don’t see the abolition of quota having any dramatic effect on the UK market. Volatility will be hugely challenging going forward and we must develop resilience to this.”


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