Fair Milk is a weapon for dairy farmers and it’s time for us to recognise it! For more than 15 years now, one third of the member countries of our beautiful European Milk Board (EMB) have had their own Fair Milk brands. It all started after the scandalous 2009 milk crisis which was caused by massive overproduction as a result of the abolition of all market regulation. Farmers decided to take things into our own hands, and we launched national brands to get our fair share of the added value of our work. During these hard times, it was important to recuperate some of that added value. But we still had to develop the idea, find a processor and, most importantly, convince retailers to promote our products so that consumers would buy them!

The success of the concept depended and still depends on the many committed, motivated farmers. To better understand its success, you must first become a true ambassador for the brand through numerous presentations at fairs, events of all kinds, tastings in stores and, of course, in our regions and families. But to get there, we have to know where we started, understand why our prices almost never cover our production costs, see how certain political decision-makers categorise us all too often as a bargaining chip in free trade negotiations or think that they are working towards food security when, in fact, they are doing just the opposite!

That’s where our Fair Milk becomes very interesting beyond us getting our due and being able to pay our bills! This concept becomes a weapon in the face of buyers. By working together to ensure that the majority of products from our farms are managed by us, we can fix the price for our hard work and our physical and moral investment – a price that allows us decent lives, facilitates entry for young people to the sector, ensures quality, protects the environment, promotes health and well-being etc. We deserve it and so do consumers. Taking control of our destiny collectively through the Fair Milk concept forces everyone to recognise that we are vital because food is vital!

So, farmers who have not yet taken the step – be it for milk, meat, eggs, food grains, potatoes or whatever else is produced on our farms – we invite all of you to join this beautiful adventure because if we don’t get organised, we will continue to be on the receiving end. I know that the system is far gone against us, but the Fair Milk concept is the solution to quickly and radically reverse this trend; it just needs to become a priority – our priority. At the end of the day, selling at a loss isn’t sustainable for anyone.

Boris Gondouin, EMB Vice President and Board member in charge of Fair Milk