Dear Mr Hansen,
Europe is on the brink of another potentially devastating crisis in the dairy sector. In many Member States, milk producers are currently witnessing a sharp and accelerating drop in prices. Numerous farms – especially family farms – now face immediate threats to their existence.

The German Fair Milk brand, Die Faire Milch, is considered a pioneer in milk production and the German dairy sector as it places regional milk products and sustainability at the heart of their model. The latest edition of their newsletter provides fascinating insights into the Berlin International Green Week as well as the awards ceremony recognising “regional stars”. Here are some of the highlights.

Alongside several Walloon and European agricultural organisations, MIG is taking a firm stance against the free-trade agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur countries. This agreement poses a direct threat to agriculture, the environment and food security in Europe by nullifying all sustainability efforts.

EMB statement: “We have to talk about cooperatives! What cooperatives are – what they are not – and what they pretend to be!”
With the planned merger of Arla Foods and the DMK Group and an estimated combined pro forma revenue of 19 billion euros, a new cooperative giant will soon be on the market.

The Faireswiss cooperative markets Fair Milk in Switzerland that makes it possible to pay 1 Swiss franc per litre to its dairy farmers.

Based on the results of a centralised survey, Agroscope published agricultural revenues in late 2024: the average income in the dairy farming sector was 15 francs per hour in 2023. This is unbelievably low compared to the rest of the economy where wages were 42 francs per hour in 2023. As a result, Swiss milk production lost more than 50% of its producers in less than 30 years: we had 44,000 farmers in 1996; they numbered 16,759 at the end of 2024.

Against the backdrop of this dramatic situation, Faireswiss and their Fair Milk model is on the scene with a solution to improve dairy farmer income! While the current average price paid to producers is 70 centimes, Faireswiss pays 1 CHF per litre of milk, which largely allows to cover production costs.

Faireswiss is a cooperative of 75 milk producers distributed across Switzerland. It was created in June 2018 and the first carton of milk was sold in late September 2019 thanks to our first partner Manor. Since then, other retailers have joined the adventure: PAM and Edelweiss in Valais, Aligro, some Spar stores, and since 2024, Aldi stores in Romandy (the French-speaking part of Switzerland) and the cantons of Berne and Solothurn. Our milk is also sold in many local grocery stores as well as in collective catering establishments. For example, all the canteens operated by the city of Lausanne as well as the Vaud university hospital (CHUV) exclusively use Fair Milk. All in all, we have about 500 points of sale in Switzerland with most in the French-speaking part of Switzerland.

To join the Faireswiss cooperative, milk producers must commit to at least two of the three animal welfare and sustainability programmes in terms of animal feed: grassland-based milk and meat production (GMM), regular outdoor exercise for livestock (ROEL) and particularly animal-friendly stabling systems (PAS). Producers must also participate in outreach activities in shops or at events. It is very important for us at Faireswiss to be in contact with consumers, to make them understand the reality of milk production in Switzerland, to show them how essential it is to keep dairy farming in Switzerland as 70% of our agricultural land is grassland, and unlike ruminants, humankind cannot digest grass and it has no nutritional value to us.

Since the beginning of the project, we have sold 7.5 million litres of milk, with an average 1.6 million litres annually in recent years. We have also paid 2.4 million francs to the Faireswiss cooperative members since 2019. While it is true that Faireswiss is just a drop in the dairy ocean of 3.3 billion litres of milk produced every year, our project remains a beacon of hope for the sector. We wish more big retailers would play their part in making Faireswiss milk available to their consumers who should have a choice in stores. Despite our steady growth, the slow increase in sales means that we are unfortunately unable to admit new producers to the cooperative. And we have 120 producers on the waiting list! At the end of the day, if each inhabitant of Switzerland bought one litre of Fair Milk per month, this would mean an additional 6 francs per year and per inhabitant. And this can be life-changing for Swiss dairy farmers!

We invite you to consult the map with our points of sale or to visit our website (both available in German, French and Italian).

Thank you for supporting Swiss dairy farmers!

Berthe Darras, head of the Dairy Committee at Uniterre, EMB Fair Milk edition 2025

The milk price is currently acceptable for most Swedish producers. A few dairies are unable to match the price offered by the market leader, but there is a general hope among farmers that milk prices will at least remain at their current level.

On 20 March 2025, a solemn event in Memmingen looked back at something that took place 500 years ago at this very place: the adoption of the “Twelve Articles” by the so-called “Peasants’ Parliament” of 1525, a ground-breaking document of farmer self-determination and a milestone on the long road to freedom, equality and human rights.

The Irish dairy sector has seen a positive first half of 2025. Weather has been pleasant, with cows able to get to pasture early, and grass growth has been strong over the course of the first six months. Rain has been moderate with a really dry May followed by a much-needed wet spell in June, hence the growth in pastures has been above and beyond 2024 levels.

In early September, the Agriculture Committee of the European Parliament adopted a draft opinion on the proposals tabled by the European Commission to amend the Common Market Organisation (CMO). The German family farmers’ association AbL especially welcomes the proposed changes to rules that require mandatory written contracts as they would strengthen the position of farmers in negotiations for fair producer prices.

“Die faire Milch” Germany and Boris Gondouin in charge of Fair Milk at the European Milk Board opened this year’s European Fair Milk Conference in Dortmund with a warm welcome. It was a cordial reunion of friends and partners who jointly emphasised the importance of farmers mutually strengthening each other in Europe: “Today, we are celebrating not only Fair Milk, but also our cohesion without which there can’t be any future for our farms”, says Boris Gondouin.

Denmark has introduced mandatory feed-based measures for larger dairy herds in order to curb climate emissions from cows. Turning policy into practice is a real-world test – technically speaking, in rations and routines, and politically across the sector as costs, logistics and acceptance are widely debated.

Dairy farmers from across Europe met for the European Milk Board (EMB) General Assembly on 19 and 20 November in Brussels. The high attendance clearly shows that the situation on the dairy market is dire – and coordination across borders is more important than ever before. The milk producers call for EU-wide activation of the voluntary production volume reduction scheme.