
Many dairy farmers are facing major losses following the closure of restaurants and cafes across the country due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Dairy farmers across the UK are struggling to stay afloat as demand for milk from cafes, restaurants and offices have plummeted following the ongoing pandemic.
While oversupply of milk has reduced prices down to 15 pence per litre, no demand in some parts of the UK, has led to many farmers pouring gallons of milk down the drain.
Reports estimate that over 300 dairy farms, which produce around 1 million litres of milk a day, are being affected by the ongoing crisis.
“We have about 25 per cent whose businesses at this moment are not viable,” said Chair of the National Farmers Union’s dairy board Michael Oakes.
‘Hit by an atomic bomb’
According to Dairy Farmer Steven Bates, the dairy industry has been ravaged by the virus.
“So all the restaurants, cafes and so on will all use milk. Suddenly, certain parts of the industry have disappeared overnight,” he told Liverpool Echo.
“The way it works is farms sell milk to dairies who sell to restaurants and cafes, and the lockdown has hit that trade like an atomic bomb.
“There are dairies where the majority of trade has gone and their business has gone down the pan overnight.”
“In the long term this is going to be negative, very very negative. The biggest problems will not be what we are facing now, but there is going to be a big, big recession. It could be devastating for the milk industry,” he added.

Financial aid
While the Scotland’s farmers’ union has urged people to drink more milk, the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) has called for short-term government initiated financial support to prevent the sector from collapsing.
According to RABDF, without financial aid, some farmers may have to cull thousands of cows, which could further disrupt the supply chain when normalcy returns.
“This scheme will ensure both short-term and longer-term food security and ease the stress on the industry,” said RABDF Chairman Peter Alvis in a statement.
“Removing the excess distressed milk from the marketplace will help to stabilize the current spot price without causing long-term market distortion.
“It will also allow those affected dairy farmers to continue to pay for invoices for farm inputs to the wider local/rural supply industry beyond the farmgate and will prevent extra cows being culled which will exacerbate the problems in the beef supply chain.”
Death blow
While the ongoing pandemic has thrown an unexpected spanner in the works, the global dairy industry was already plagued with a drop in sales before the outbreak.
Statistics released by the Dairy Farmers of America revealed the dairy industry had plummeted by $1.1 billion in 2018.
Analysis put it down to the growing popularity of plant milks and an increasing volume of studies that implicate dairy for several diseases including cancer.
Share the article!
Lifestyle
Vegan culture, food, beauty & more
Is Tobey Maguire vegan? Here’s what we know
- Mohsina Dodhiya
- 17th August 2023
Tobey Maguire often speaks about veganism and animal issues. Tobey Maguire, the actor best known for playing Spider-Man in the Sam Raimi trilogy, is a vegan. He has been a vegetarian since 1992 and became a vegan in 2009. A lifelong commitment to animal rights Maguire’s decision to go vegan was motivated by his love …
Continue reading “Is Tobey Maguire vegan? Here’s what we know”
Plant-based food jobs surge with 32% growth in just 3 months
- Mohsina Dodhiya
- 17th August 2023
The number of open jobs advertised in the plant-based industry increased by almost a third from April to July 2023, GlobalData reported. The plant-based food industry is booming, and this is reflected in the number of job openings in the sector. According to data from GlobalData, the number of open jobs advertised in the plant-based …
Continue reading “Plant-based food jobs surge with 32% growth in just 3 months”
VEGAN MEMES
NEED A LAUGH?
QUIZZES
All the quizzes you love to binge!
QUIZ: If you score 11/12 on this quiz, you’re a verified vegan food expert
- Marlon Farrugia
- 10th January 2020
How much vegan knowledge do you have stored away? Do you have to Google your way through a shopping trip, or do you have all the bad E-numbers memorised? Find out now with this quiz. Marlon Farrugia Marlon Farrugia is a freelance writer from Brighton. He has been a dedicated vegan for many years, and …
Continue reading “QUIZ: If you score 11/12 on this quiz, you’re a verified vegan food expert”
QUIZ: What is your perfect Vegan Halloween Costume?
- Marlon Farrugia
- 13th October 2019
Spook Season approaches. There will be ghosts, goblins, ghouls, and glucose. You need a costume, and you want to it to show off your personality, which means VEGAN. But what to choose? Take our quiz to find out your perfect outfit. Marlon Farrugia Marlon Farrugia is a freelance writer from Brighton. He has been a …
Continue reading “QUIZ: What is your perfect Vegan Halloween Costume?”
QUIZ: What kind of vegetable are you?
- Marlon Farrugia
- 26th September 2019
“If you were a vegetable, what kind would you be?” A question that has tormented humanity throughout the ages – until now. Read: QUIZ: If you score 19/20 on THIS quiz, you’re a Vegan God Marlon Farrugia Marlon Farrugia is a freelance writer from Brighton. He has been a dedicated vegan for many years, and …