A Dutch court has ordered that dairy manufacturers must agree to talks with farmers over the price of milk.
Dutch farmers launched a delivery boycott last week in protest against the low price of milk. The Dutch Dairyman Board has blockaded a number of factories to prevent supplies of milk getting through.
According to local reports, a court in the city of Haarlem granted an urgent application from Friesland Foods to stop a blockade at its factory in Nijkerk.
However, a spokesperson for the DDB told just-food that the farmers’ union voluntarily lifted the blockade after the court ordered Friesland to sit down and negotiate with the union.
“The court decision has forced dairy factories to negotiate with us about price. This is something we have been working towards for 20 years,” the spokesperson said.
“We want milk prices to be higher than the cost of production. We are very hopeful that talks will be successful,” the DDB continued.
Friesland was unavailable for comment as just-food went to press.
