Latvian and Lithuanian dairy farmers agree on stabilizing the industry

On Tuesday, January 12, a meeting of Latvian and Lithuanian agricultural cooperative leaders and representatives of farmers' organizations took place in Ceraukste parish, Bauska region, during which the most important current events in the dairy industry were discussed. The most important topics for joint discussions were the current situation and future prospects, challenges in the context of the new EU environment, climate and Common Agricultural Policy, as well as cooperation opportunities in milk sales.
Maira Dzelzkalēja-Burmistre, Deputy Chairwoman of the Board of the Association “Farmers' Council”: "Our joint meeting this time was very productive, there are many common things to discuss, problems to solve. We agreed that in the coming months until the start of the season, we will meet regularly to develop a joint, transnational action plan, the main goal of which is to get out of the lowest milk purchase price hole in Europe. Several solutions also crystallized during the meeting, for example, joining forces for the sale of raw milk in order to strengthen our positions in the common market."
Thinking about the possibilities for Baltic cooperatives to join forces and create larger milk supplies for potential processors, the farmers agreed to analyze the tax and legal conditions of all three countries in order to make a decision on the most advantageous place for registering a joint company. One of the main problems was the different quality of milk – not only between cooperatives, but also between farms, which is affected by the heterogeneous structures of farms. To improve the situation, the farmers agreed on a mutual exchange of information – what legislative acts regulate the quality of raw milk and what improvements would be necessary. In order to create a common portfolio of products produced in dairy farmers’ cooperatives for different markets in the future, the dairy farmers also agreed to collect information on dairy products produced in the cooperatives.
During the meeting, farmers also agreed to organize a joint international conference with the aim of determining development scenarios for the development of dairy farming in the Baltics, taking into account the ambitions of the European Commission (EC) in the event of the implementation of measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As M.Dzelzkalēja-Burmistre points out, this is a strategically important issue for the agriculture of our countries, as the implementation of the measures would significantly affect the development of agriculture. “The latest EC forecasts for the number of dairy cows in Latvia in 2020 and beyond show a rapid decline in the number of animals. This is quite alarming information and will significantly affect the development of dairy farming in the near future. Dairy farmers must more actively defend their interests and do everything they can to promote the export of dairy products, which would ensure that the number of cows does not decrease significantly.,” says the Blacksmith-Burmese.
The next meeting of Baltic dairy farmers is planned for February.