What an offer! Free milk today at the GAEC Croix Rouge - all you have to do is turn up between 10am and 6pm with your own containers and you can fill your boots - so to speak! But why? How can a farmer give away milk?
Well, first off, he has a huge container full of the precious white liquid, and the cows are in the fields producing more. Secondly, the dairy that would collect it has a few problems - various tankers are blockaded into a number of farms around the department, plus there is a lorry across their entrance as well. Thirdly, the farmer is in any case not particularly minded to let the dairy have the milk at the price they are offering - 208 Euros a tonne or 20 centimes a litre. With the current exchange rate that is about 18p a litre, but on the natural exchange rate, it is more like 14p a litre.
The per tonne price is the lowest offered since 1982, and just two months ago, farmers were receiving 310 Euros a tonne - as it costs nearer 28 centimes a litre to produce, the expectation seems to be that farmers will take the hit and be happy. Would any other business be happy to take a 30% price drop and not lay off staff (not easy on a family farm) or dispose of means of production (do we really want cows killed over this?)? However with little publicity, farmers have once again had to take to direct action. Our neighbour's son has blockaded a tanker, while GAEC Croix Rouge is giving away milk and while your containers are filled, will tell you at length about the injustices that they face. Others are filling local ditches and their own urine pits with milk that should be feeding Europe and the world.
But with the drop in farm gate prices, are we seeing a similar (30%) fall in the prices of dairy products in the shops and supermarkets? No - there is some slight easing on milk prices but you still pay about 1.15 Euros a litre (so someone somewhere is still making nice margins), while highly processed things like Activia yoghurts are in places up to 2 Euros for four, and butter is about 3 Euros for 500 grammes.
So I am with the farmers - pay a decent price for your food and don't compromise on quality and where you can, go direct to the producer! I am now off to try to make my own cheese, plus sticking to the old favourites like rice pudding, toad in the hole, fish pie... and did you know you can freeze milk? See below for the local blockade at Montivert - aux armes, citoyens!
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