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EU ministers to discuss milk row EU ministers discussing milk row
(about 7 hours later)
Agriculture and farming ministers from across Europe are to gather in Brussels for a special meeting on what some call a crisis in dairy production. Hundreds of farmers have driven tractors into Brussels to put pressure on European Union agriculture ministers meeting to discuss low milk prices.
For weeks now farmers around the EU have been dumping milk stocks and withholding supplies. The talks come after weeks of protests across Europe, with farmers dumping milk stocks and withholding supplies at what they see as uneconomic prices.
They are protesting against what they say are uneconomic prices for milk. The problem in the European milk market is that supply exceeds demand, so prices have fallen sharply.
There is a pretty simple problem in the European milk market: there is a lot of supply and not enough demand, and prices have fallen. France and Germany want more export subsidies to help lift prices.
Farmers are at the sharp end of this problem and have seen their sale price tumble. However, the UK and other countries are said to oppose the idea.
In the last few weeks European farmers have dumped millions of gallons of milk and withheld supplies in protest. A spokeswoman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the department would not be making a comment until the meeting was over.
The French and German governments would like to see the EU stepping back from the gradual liberalisation of the milk market - and instead increase export subsidies and reduce quotas to bring down supply. 'Discussing possibilities'
The British government is not keen to go down this path. Swedish Agriculture Minister Eskil Erlandsson, who is chairing the meeting, said it would "talk about the medium and long-term possibilities for the European milk and dairy sector".
The meeting will not take any decisions - they might come in two weeks' time. However, he said any decisions would take at least two more weeks to be fully approved.
But farmers have for the moment suspended a supply boycott that threatened supermarket stocks. Farmers from across Germany, France and other nations are protesting outside the main EU Council building ahead of the meeting.
They argue that current production costs are more than twice the price they get for their milk.
Mr Erlandsson said a key problem was that while farmers have seen the prices they receive for their milk decline by 40%, prices in the shops have only fallen between 1% and 2%.
Across its 27 member nations, the EU pays the agriculture sector 55bn euros ($80bn; £50bn) annually for support payments, storage aid, rural development, and other projects.