Dairy farmers express dissatisfaction with price they receive for their milk and the variations between creameries.
In north Cork different creameries are offering different prices for milk. The range of prices from one creamery to another, leaves farmers divided over where to supply their milk. Some bring their produce to Rathmore Creamery, while others supply a branch of the North Cork Co‑op in Cullen.
Farmer Donal Fitzgerald explains that his decision to supply Rathmore is not a choice but a necessity, as his milk would not be accepted in Cullen. In Cullen, farmers receive five pence per gallon for skim milk, compared with just three pence per gallon paid in Rathmore.
Castlemaine Creamery, located midway between Killarney and Tralee, processes over seven million gallons of milk each year. Dissatisfaction with the price on offer recently led suppliers to withhold their milk. Supply resumed on 1 May following this dispute.
Arthur Stephens, a 70 acre farmer from Milltown with 32 cows, supplies milk to Castlemaine Central Creamery. He is also the secretary of the newly formed Castlemaine Milk Suppliers Association, set up to campaign for better prices for its members. He attributes the low prices paid to farmers to inefficiencies and unnecessarily high overheads within the dairy board.
Nearby farmer Thomas Heffernan, who farms 33 acres, has managed to make a living by maximising the use of his limited resources. His primary income comes from his milk cheque, but he acknowledges that he is losing money by not supplying a co‑operative creamery. A former secretary of the Castlemaine Consultative Committee, Thomas Heffernan was removed from the role last July after members felt the committee was ineffective. He had been frustrated by the lack of meaningful discussion on financial matters, irregular meetings, and the committee's limited power to drive change. In response, he has now established a new, independent milk suppliers’ association in Castlemaine, aimed at achieving price parity with other creameries.
This episode of 'On The Land' was broadcast on 18 May 1971. The reporter is Kieran Kissane.
