A report published by a cross-party group of MPs and Peers into the state of the British dairy sector has been fully endorsed by the NFU.

The Dairy All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) report, ‘The Sustainable Competitiveness of the British Dairy Industry’, highlights the current achievements, priorities and issues in the dairy industry and outlines measures to make the British dairy industry more sustainable and competitive.

Among its nine recommendations, the Dairy APPG highlights a push for a review of the EU intervention price for dairy products, encourages the development of futures markets, urges the Government to examine the practicality of extending the Grocery Code Adjudicator’s remit down the supply chain and strongly supports the introduction of mandatory Country of Origin labelling.

NFU dairy board chairman Rob Harrison, who gave evidence to the APPG, said: “Today we see the launch of another report highlighting the short and long term issues facing the UK dairy sector and the implications for dairy farmers. While I welcome its recommendations we now need to work together as an industry to deliver on these actions.

“There’s been no shortage of interest and support for the sector in recent months, and I applaud that. However the reports alone are not going to deliver a fairer, more sustainable dairy industry – we all need to take ownership and ensure the UK dairy industry can compete and prosper post quotas.”