News House system
Group stable discussion is playing up again in Germany
In Germany, the use of the group stable has been under discussion for some time, but no ban has been reached. Despite this, dairy farmers in the state of Bavaria are very concerned, because the dairy processors threaten with discounts on (or even stop collecting) the milk.
The use of the group barn is still common practice in the sector in the state of Bavaria, which is the largest dairy state in Germany. About half of the 30.000 dairy farms there use a group barn.
The system has been around for a long time discussion, mainly because of the animal welfare aspect. German politics decided a a few years ago not to prohibit the use of the group barn, partly because this system usually goes hand in hand with grazing.
Discount on milk price
Not politicians, but the market now wants to discourage keeping dairy cattle in tie-stalls all year round. There are rumors that various processors in Germany want to write down the milk from a group barn through a discount on the milk price. In the long run, the dairy farmers may not even want to collect the milk.
This is against the sore leg of farmers' advocacy groups in Bavaria. They believe that the processors discriminate by depreciating milk from a group barn. Walter Heidl, the chairman of the Bayerische Bauernverband, fears a structural breakdown if the dairies implement the plans. The discouragement policy can be the death blow for many companies, because they are then 'mandatory' to switch to another system. This entails high investment costs.
Wouter Job
© DCA Market Intelligence. This market information is subject to copyright. It is not permitted to reproduce, distribute, disseminate or make the content available to third parties for compensation, in any form, without the express written permission of DCA Market Intelligence.