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.

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.

Nearly all dairy farmers are now waiting and hoping that the Swedish authorities will abolish the grazing law for our cows – a regulation dating back to 1988 and at the time championed by author Astrid Lindgren that requires cows to graze outdoors for part of the summer, originally introduced as part of Sweden’s animal welfare standards.

The debate is heated, with many organisations advocating for the preservation of the current regulations. The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences is among those arguing that grazing is beneficial for animal welfare. However, there are also voices within the farming community calling for greater alignment between Swedish regulations and those of the wider European Union.

Discussions are also ongoing about how the Nature Restoration Law – a new EU regulation requiring member states to restore at least 20% of degraded land and sea areas by 2030 – will be implemented. Swedish dairy farmers hope that future climate measures and decisions taken by governments across Europe will carefully balance environmental goals with the practical needs of agricultural communities. Recently, many Dutch farmers have purchased dairy farms in Sweden. They are very welcome, though it is tragic that they have been forced to leave their own country.

While these broader debates continue, life on the farms moves with the seasons. An early spring has allowed many farmers to finish their sowing, and now we are looking to the skies, hoping for rain before the first grass cutting can begin.

Claes Jonsson, President of Sveriges Mjölkbönder, May/June 2025

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.