Dairy farmers work some of the longest hours of anyone. Today, a month's rain has been forecast to fall over central England and Wales. And it's been churcking it down on and off for most of June. Just imagine having no choice but to go out and milk twice a day, seven days a week, in this! And then there's the six-feet-per-week dry stone walling one of my farmer friends tells me he has to do to keep his miles of walling in good shape. I recently met a farmer's wife who had broken her arm - no time off work for her, she simply had to adapt the way she milked and get it done. The price paid for milk by the large supermarkets simply does not cover the cost of production. And of course the biggest companies are able to influence the market heavily. Smaller farms (and some not so small) are going under week by week. The glorious variety of the British countryside, not to mention its stewardship, which most of us take very much for granted, depend on the survival and health of farms as solid businesses, large and small. If you would like to support your local dairy farmers, please take a moment to consider signing this petition
Dairy farmers must be paid more for their milk - e petition
http://epetitionsdirect.gov.uk/petition6424
For a discussion of the issues
http://fwi.co.uk/articles/06/07/2012/133803/Jim-Paice-on-milk-and-CAP-live-QampA-transcript.html
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