organic milk in Ireland: news, issues and a new company

A new company has been established by a group of 16 organic dairy farmers. I spoke to Tipperary organic farmer Pat Mulrooney, of the newly formed Irish Organic Milk Producers (IOMP) Company about the company and also about issues facing the sector in general.

Quota, costs and prices, the need for joined up thinking about organics at Departmental level, and the remit and opportunities of the new company all emerged as key issues.

First off, Pat does see some growth potential: �We see development, and more farmers coming into it, if not in the short term them further down the line. Our production will double in the next 2 yrs, and it will probably double in Northern Ireland as well. Some of our 16 members haven�t come on stream into organic as of yet.�

However, according to Pat, this doubling will come about because of extra farmers, not because of quota increases:

�Its 2001 or 2002 since anyone has been able to get quota of any size. There is no-one retiring from our group, and we�re not able to get anything from the national pool�.

�There is a small amount of new quota for various new products, but none for our specific products. There is such a small pool of milk available to us, and none from any other source�

While the vast majority of organic milk will still be purchased by Glenisk, Pat suggests that freeing up some quota would allow for some product and brand development.

As with so many other farmers, feed costs are a major concern:

�We�d like to see more done with summer milk. Winter milk is a hefty commitment. The costs are gone crazy, with meal at �600 a tonne. It�s crippling and marginalising. Now, we�re all adapting to this as best we can, to develop systems where we�re less dependent on meal, such as growing our own crops, and growing more red clover. But we�ve no good alternative system in place - we�re making progress, but even growing our own feed puts more pressure on our available land�.

In this variable costs context, price inevitably becomes an issue. Because of the differences in production costs, every six months or so, there are discussions as to the price of summer and winter milk: �We got a reasonable price last winter, and we�re hopeful that we�ll come to a reasonable conclusion for this summer�.

Specifically, Pat states: �Really, you�d want 60c per litre for the winter and, at the very minimum, 47 to 48 cent for the summer�

Winter prices will be discussed again on the 1^st August, while summer prices are being finalised at the moment.

What is perhaps most frustrating is that the Department seems to be speaking with a forked tongue - promoting organics with one side, and holding it back with the other:

�Overall it�s a bit disjointed. While there are some good government schemes promoting organic farming, we�re very much left behind. We can�t improve like our neighbours, though we�re living in the same economy. Promotion and grant aid money are all fine, and we�re supportive of that. But there has to be something in the quota system to allow us to expand like our neighbours. Otherwise it won�t be viable.�

The current situation for organic dairy farmers with regard to costs, price and quota has provided an impetus for the formation of the IOMP company:

�At least we�ll have a more coherent voice. We�ll be giving different jobs to different people in the company. We�ll educate ourselves this first year.�

The company will have a business development dimension: Marketing and developing a better understanding of actual on-farm milk production costs are two areas Pat cites that the company will be focusing on.

Overall them, there are both opportunities and constraints on the organic dairy sector. The Irish Organic Milk Producers company will at least help the sector represent itself.