[sabrina]

So Tesco now selling 4 pints of milk for a £1. There is no way a farmer can make any money at that price. When are people going to work out that farmers going out of business means in the long term the cost of our food will go up in price. We already have powdered milk coming for Canada.

[shygirl]

I noticed that too. have they lowered the price the farmer gets too? if so I feel a e-petition coming on...

[twizzel]

Have you noticed on their posters showing the milk price drop, the cows pictured are hereford and angus  

[Lesley Silvester]

You're not supposed to notice things like that. 

[sokel]

Our Local Co-op have been selling 3 x 4 pint bottles for £3 since the middle of January so I would think this is why Tescos have started it at £1 aswell. I cant drink Cows milk, been on goats milk for so long

[hafod]

Just to put my thoughts in here. Tesco pay their dairy farmers amongst the highest prices in the UK for a liquid milk contract. See the league table of prices here: http://www.dairycodatum.org.uk/calculator/calculator_varying.htm
farmers that supply Tesco have to submit their cost data to Tesco, Tesco then work out the average cost of production and this is the minimum price they pay farmers. So the farmers are getting the average cost of production (of the entire pool of farmers).
As far as I know they have no plans to change away from the system  so the whole fact that they are now selling milk for £1 for 4 pints won't affect their farmers??? as Tesco will be taking the hit
In fact, as asda, aldi, lidl, iceland etc have been selling 4 pints for a £1 for a while now perhaps Tesco's are trying to increase the amount of milk they sell - this will  benefit the farmers supplying them - as more milk going into tesco's rather than other markets means more milk being paid for at the Tesco 'premium' price.
Apart from the terrible adverts using beef cows & being pretty poor at communicating I'm not sure they have done anything wrong?

[devonlad]

not sure that too many in the farming community see this as a good move .if this was simply a temporary sales promo then no problem. however, many of the other supermatkets- asda, lidl and aldi have been selling milk this cheap for a year or more so tescos are simply joining in.. currently farmers get approx. 17p a pint - selling milk in store for just 8p more is not something Tesco's will put up with for long- put the price back up or buy it cheaper hmmmmmmm? let's see

[Mammyshaz]

Hate the idea of SM getting such a stronghold on the milk market.
Recently approached by a milkman selling from a large local dairy so gone with this. Looked on web and the dairy takes local farmers milk to bottle and sell. The also sell to SM so am I really helping farmers?? 
At least I'm currently keeping a local milkman in a job 

[hughesy]

I believe it is the case that farmers who supply Tesco will be unnaffected. Trouble is what about the farmers who supply their competitors? Will they be taking a hit to help their supermarkets compete?

[Clarebelle]

The trouble is that, even if farmers arn't directly taking a financial hit for this price drop, their campaign for fairer prices for milk definately will. Selling milk for so little undervalues it, people who have no concept of farming see farmers fighting for fairer prices when every supermarket sells milk for pennies. It makes farmers look like they are whining for more money for a product that people percieve is cheap.

[trish.farm]

I have my milk delivered by my milkman. Absolutely no idea how much i am paying per pint!  Just pay the bill every couple of months.  I know i am paying more than from a supermarket but would much rather support a milkman and keep him in a job than pile my money into a supermarket.

[sabrina]

One of local potato farmers gave up last year. He supplied Tesco and could not make a living. other farmers in my area will having nothing to do with any of the supermarkets. they say is the road to ruin .

[devonlad]

The trouble is that, even if farmers arn't directly taking a financial hit for this price drop, their campaign for fairer prices for milk definately will. Selling milk for so little undervalues it, people who have no concept of farming see farmers fighting for fairer prices when every supermarket sells milk for pennies. It makes farmers look like they are whining for more money for a product that people percieve is cheap.

I think clarebelle has summed up the problem perfectly. I found this table which shows price rises on everyday items over the past 40 years. says it all I think. the 667& rise in milk is based on 46p a pint- at 25p a pint the rise is only 317%- now that's devaluing a product


1973
2013
% change


Pint of lager
 14p
 £2.87
 1948%
 
Loaf of bread
 11p
 £1.30
 1082%
 
Apples, per kg
 28p
 £2.02
 622%
 
Pint of milk
 6p
 46p
 667%
 
Sausages, per kg
 58p
 £4.84
 735%
 
Butter per 250g
 13p
 £1.42
 992%
 
Carrots, per kg
 11p
 91p
 723%
 
Sugar, per kg
 11p
 93p
 787%
 
Coffee, per 100g
 28p
 £2.67
 853%
 
Dozen eggs
 33p
 £2.78
 743%
 
Flour, per 1.5kg
 15p
 £1.19
 724%
 
Diesel, per litre
 8p
 £1.41
 1727%
 
Average detached house
 £16,980
 £305,391
 1699%
 
Gold: troy ounce
 £34
 £1,051
 2952%
 

[Bramblecot]

I have my milk delivered by my milkman. Absolutely no idea how much i am paying per pint!  Just pay the bill every couple of months.  I know i am paying more than from a supermarket but would much rather support a milkman and keep him in a job than pile my money into a supermarket.

Me too.  Mine is 70p per pint and is delivered at 0100 3 days a week.  The dairy is a local family firm and I pay them when I remember, cash on the doorstep .  I just cut our money in other ways.

[Lesley Silvester]

I have my milk delivered by my goat.