Supermarket risks "tying the hands of dairy farmers"- says Farron

Newly appointed Shadow Secretary of State for DEFRA Tim Farron has warned Tesco that they run risk of "tying the hands of dairy farmers" as part of their recent modest price rise.

Tesco have announced they will increase their base milk price by 0.75ppl - but only to producers who sign up to consultancy firm Promar's costings. Farmers will now be given until the end of the month to sign up with Promar.

Commenting Mr Farron said:

"Put simply, Tesco are giving dairy farmers an ultimatum that is both unfair and counterproductive.

"By asking farmers to sign up to these costings they are effectively reducing the pool of those who could qualify.

"At a time when milk production is at a 40 year low Tesco should not be tying the hands of dairy farmers. We have already seen a number of farmers leaving the industry because of their inability to make a living. If other supermarkets follow suit then this trend is only going to continue."