FARMERS want a say in the services they get from the States if they have to pay more for them. Support for breed development services, the slaughterhouse and the incinerator is worth more than £400,000 per year to the industry.
Farmers pay more than £30,000 of the total cost and the Commerce and Employment Department is looking to see payment shared on a more even basis.
‘The department is asking farmers to finance something that is run by the States and our view is that if we do, we want a say in how it’s being done,’ said Guernsey Farmers’ Association spokesman James Watts.
The department’s proposals for the future of the dairy industry will go before the States at this month’s meeting.
Mr Watts said the matter of recovering more of the cost for those services was first raised about a year ago when it was suggested that 1p could be put on the price of a litre of milk.
‘We understand that the States needs to fill the black hole and we appreciate that it takes the burden off the taxpayer, but in the current proposals there’s no suggestion of a price rise in milk in relation to this issue.’
Breed development services include artificial insemination, milk recording, identification and registration and herd health testing.
The department wants the cost of those to move towards a 50:50 partnership between the States and the industry, while the latter would pay for slaughtering and incineration at commercial rates.
Mr Watts said that at a recent meeting the department suggested that significant savings could be made in running those types of services in different ways.
But if farmers have to pay more, they want a say in how they are run.
The department said such services were essential for the continued success of the dairy industry. But given the scale of it, few of them, if any, would stand alone as viable propositions provided by the private sector.
Asking farmers to meet the full costs would have a significant impact on the viability of their businesses.
Mr Watts said that nothing in the proposals had been a surprise: it was an ongoing process and a matter of evolution.
‘We are still very appreciative of the support that Commerce and Employment offers us.’
Article posted on 14th April, 2007 - 12.00am
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