January 2017 Newsletter
SDAS Deadlines & Penalties, Health Cert, Dairy Seminar, Voluntary Supply Management Scheme (VSMS), Fixed Milk Price Scheme
Milk Price & Supply
The Board of Directors have increased the milk price for the month of December by 1.0 cents per litre - bringing the price to 32.39 cpl (147.24 cents per gallon) at 3.60% butterfat and 3.30% protein, including milk price support of 0.5 cents per litre (cpl) by the Co-Op, Winter Somatic Cell Count (SCC) bonus of 0.88 cpl, SDAS bonus of 0.15 cpl and VAT at 5.2%.
The average price paid for the month is 36.87 cpl. This is based on the average butterfat of 4.36% and protein of 3.53%, including milk price support, SCC & SDAS bonuses and VAT.
SDAS Deadlines & Penalties
It is imperative that all suppliers are certified under the SDAS. Unfortunately, a penalty will apply on milk supplied that is not certified in the future.
Details are:
As of April 1st 2017 any supplier that is not signed up to the SDAS will incur a 5.0 cents per litre penalty on all milk supplied from April 1st.
As of July 1st 2017 any supplier that has not completed an audit and achieved certification under the SDAS will incur a 5.0 cents per litre penalty on all milk supplied from July 1st onwards.
Health Cert – Final Reminder
A number of suppliers have yet to submit a Dairy Health Certificate. We will be unable to collect milk from 1st January 2017 without receiving a completed cert. The white copies of pages 1, 3 and a list of the cow numbers should be sent to the Co-op.
The cert should be signed by a vet and dated 2016.
If you intend to continue supplying in 2017, please attend to your Health Certificate obligations immediately to avoid unnecessary letters and phone calls.
Spring Dairy Seminar
The Society is holding a
SPRING DAIRY SEMINAR
on Tuesday the 24th of January
in the West Cork Hotel, Skibbereen at 8.30pm.
Speakers include:
Dr. Finbarr Mulligan, UCD Vetrinary Department
Transition Cow Management
Mr.Sean Coughlan, CEO ICBF
HerdPlus and EBI
Dr. Jason Van Der Velde, West Cork Rapid Response
Farm Health & Safety
All Welcome to Attend
Spring Dairy Promotion
Starts Jan 30th 2017
Fertilizer and Feed
Each milk supplier is receiving a summary of their purchases of feed and fertilizer from the Co-Op for 2016. Account holders are also receiving their annual statements this month.
These documents should be carefully filed for future use.
Voluntary Supply Management Scheme (VSMS)
All suppliers who applied to the VSMS and reduced their supply accordingly must now apply to the department for payment.
Each supplier will receive an application form from the Society in the coming days. This form must be signed and returned to the Society by the 3rd of February 2017 in order to apply for payment.
Milk Quality
As suppliers recommence supplying in the Spring it is important that proper standards are maintained from the beginning.
Ensure all equipment including water heater is working correctly. Check all rubber ware and replace all worn or damaged sections paying particular attention to rubber bends which are often a source of bacterial growth.
The first collection from each supplier will be testedfor T.B.C., S.C.C. and antibiotics. Therefore milk should only be stored for a maximum of 4 days before collection.
Contact your milk collection driver in adequate time so that collections can be arranged.
We recommend that suppliers take a milk sample from their tanks and have it tested in Carbery prior to recommencing milk supply to ensure that the milk is fit for collection.
Fixed Milk Price Scheme
The Society has finalised the figures for the 3rd fixed milk price scheme. A total of 10% of the 2016 supply was available at the fixed price. In total 45 suppliers applied to join the scheme.
Any supplier that applied to fix 10%, 15% or 20% of their 2016 supply was successful in fixing their desired volume.
All suppliers who joined the 3rd scheme will be paid at the fixed price from January onwards. Monthly statements will now reflect the quantities at both the fixed milk price and the variable price.
Completed fixed milk price forms will be returned to members of the scheme in the coming days.