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The drought, combined with too low a rise in prices, could cause a shortage of milk in the coming months, with farmers leaving the profession.
The drought raised the specter of a milk shortage in France. Alain Delangle, organic producer in Normandy, has one of the largest herds in the region. Each of his 120 animals drinks up to 100 liters of water a day, and the weather does not reassure him. “It’s spring, the grass is very green… But we’ve seen summers when the grass was as dry as a doormat. And that is very distressing for a farmer”, he confides.
He refuses to give up, but is worried about his profession: “There are no more replacements on the farms, he explains. Who says more farmers, says more breeding, food industry and maybe tomorrow more dairy products on the shelves.” For Patrice and Annie Pellouin, also farmers in Normandy, the account is not there. So they decided to sell their dairy farm. “We work seven days a week and spend our time repaying loans,” Anne explains. “If I earned my living, I would continue”, adds her husband. Same observation for Emmanuel Pottier, who stops at 54: “There are a lot of breeders over 50 who are fed up.” All are calling for urgent state aid to support the profession.