Dairy farmers dump milk amid Muller factory chaos

Dairy farmers have been forced to dump thousands of litres of fresh milk following a major breakdown at the Muller-owned Yew Tree Dairy site in Lancashire – triggering frustration over poor communication and uncertainty around payments.

The disruption, caused by technical issues at the Skelmersdale processing plant, halted milk collection for more than a week, leaving some farmers with no alternative but to dispose of their milk into slurry pits.

Farmers Weekly understands the operational problems have now been resolved and no tankers remain backed up at the site.

However, affected farmers have accused Muller of poor communication and unanswered questions over future milk collections and payment.

See also: Yew Tree Dairy producers losing money due to poor milk price

One supplier, who on Tuesday (22 April) had still not had his milk collected for 12 days, said: “It’s an absolute joke. There’s no communication from Muller. We still don’t know what’s going on. No phone calls, no messages – just silence.”

The farmer, who has been dairying for nearly 30 years, added: “We’ve never had to dump milk before, let alone for nearly two weeks. It’s completely unacceptable. We don’t even know when and if we’ll be paid.”

He said while he had received his March payment, there was no clarity on whether April losses would be covered. “We’re already under pressure.

“Basic Payment Scheme and Sustainable Farming Incentive payments are down tens of thousands of pounds, and production costs are up 10%. If we can’t feed the cows, we might have to sell up.”

Farmers supplying Yew Tree Dairy report being paid around 33-35p/litre, which is as much as 10-11p/litre less than what some other processors are paying.

Alan Hughes, a spokesman for campaign group Farmers To Action, posted footage on social media showing milk being disposed of responsibly at one farm in Derbyshire.

Mr Hughes said: “Muller still haven’t told this farmer when collections will resume – or whether he’ll be paid. It’s disgraceful.

“This is the kind of pressure that pushes people to the brink.”

Muller response

Muller has denied claims of poor communication and the company said all affected producers will be fully compensated.

“Due to an operational issue at our Skelmersdale site, which has now been resolved, we asked some supplying farmers to responsibly dispose of milk,” said a Muller spokesman.

“Those impacted were contacted and will be compensated in full.”