Dale Farm looks to the future with confidence

“And we have customers for more milk,” confirmed the co-op’s chief executive officer (CEO) Nick Whelan.

“The recent growth in milk volumes has been brought about by a combination of two factors: the recent strengthening of the milk price to feed cost ratio and the continuing improvement in dairy cow genetics.

He added: “We are seeing that dairy farmers can and will produce more milk than had previously been anticipated if the proper financial incentive is offered to them.

“And this has been the unfolding scenario of recent months.”

The increase in Dale Farm milk volumes has coincided with the coming-on-stream of the dairy processer’s new cheddar cheese processing plant (CP2) at Dunmanbridge in Co Tyrone.

Nick Whelan again: “The development of the new plant was completed at the end of last December, a month earlier than had initially been envisaged.

“It has the scope to handle 280M litres of milk per annum.

“It was thought initially that the plant might reach full capacity by 2028/29.

“However, the reality is that the plant has been full this peak.

“This is a direct reflection of the increased milk volumes produced by Dale Farm suppliers.

“Peak milk is now in the rear view mirror, which means that we can get back to a more normal commissioning of the plant.

“The sales from CP2 are helped by three patents on our cheddar curd.”

Nick Whelan further explained: “These innovations are already helping to secure new cheddar cheese customers in countries around the world.

“The full capacity of CP2 currently is 28,000t, which can be flexed further with some investments.

“Dale Farm is currently supplying cheese to 46 countries with new markets opening up in the Middle East, Egypt, Algeria and Morocco.”

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Whelan continued: “Dale Farm is very confident about its future prospects. And it all comes back to milk. We need more of it. And in practical terms this means growing our current milk pool, encouraging new entrants and welcoming new suppliers.

“This is a key message that we will be communicating at this year’s Balmoral Show.”

Dale Farm’s CEO confirmed that the co-op paid a base price of 41.8 pence per litre for April milk.

“Markets look they will remain steady over the coming three to six months,” he further explained.

“This is good news for dairy farmers. They work long hours every day of the year: they deserve a period of sustainable returns.”

Recent weeks have seen Dale Farm board members and the co-op’s management team hosting area meetings for farmer-members across Northern Ireland.

Events culminated with a Special General Meeting in Cookstown, at which a number of changes to the co-op’s constitution were overwhelmingly agreed by a 96% majority.

Whelan confirmed that the schedule of meetings gave the co-op’s board members a tremendous opportunity to gauge the mood of the organisation’s milk suppliers.

He continued: “And the feedback that we received was very positive.

“The Cookstown meeting saw agreement reached on a number of changes to Dale Farm’s constitution, many of which were long overdue.

“These included greater provision for women to have a role in the co-op’s decision making processes.”

Nick Whelan is content that the farm gate price structure operated by Dale Farm is fit for purpose at the present time.

The financial values attributed to the components’ fraction of the milk supplied are evaluated on a quarterly basis.

Whelan added: “This is helping to deliver farmer prices that continuously reflect true market values.”

He concluded: “Dale Farm will have a major presence at this year’s Balmoral Show. The event represents a unique opportunity for the co-op’s management team and board members to meet up with farmer-suppliers from across Northern Ireland.

“Representatives from United Feeds will also be in attendance throughout the four days of the event.”

When asked if any special guest would be attending the Dale Farm stand at the show, Nick Whelan answered: “yes, our farmers.” ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​