News Dutch Milk Foundation
No less than 230 members left FrieslandCampina
Over the past 12 months, no fewer than 230 FrieslandCampina member dairy farmers have switched to another dairy processor. This is evident from figures from the Dutch Milk Foundation (DMF). A-ware seems to have incorporated the majority of dairy farms as suppliers.
The number of switchers from 1 July 2018 to 1 July 2019 is exceptionally high compared to other years. For example, between July 2017 and July 2018, 47 dairy farmers made use of the scheme, claiming a departure premium of €5 per 100 kilos of milk.
many switchers
A spokesperson for DMF confirms that many dairy farmers left, especially last summer, although he does not leave any further details. Reportedly, however, the vast majority of dairy farmers have moved to A-ware. In the past 10 years, a total of 407 applications were processed, of which 387 were approved.
The so-called severance package arises from the merger between Friesland Foods and Campina in 2008. The European Commission approved the deal at the time, on the condition that 1,2 billion kilos of raw milk became available to third parties. In total, 37% of this volume has now been allocated to other parties. This means that the scheme will remain in place for the time being.
Unrest within FrieslandCampina
The exodus within FrieslandCampina is most likely a result of unrest within the dairy cooperative. For example, last year FrieslandCampina came up with the balanced growth scheme, putting growing dairy farmers at risk of being cut on milk money. This caused a lot of commotion at the time. In addition, the dairy cooperative introduced the PlanetProof Milk Flow, which was also not appreciated by all members.
At the same time, A-ware was active in recruiting new dairy farmers during that period. The cheese maker organized several recruitment days, during which potential suppliers were welcomed by the top of the company. They were also given a tour of the new factory in Heerenveen.
Wouter Job
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