Milk prices Options

[regor]

Hey! Listen up you guys. The supermarkets seem to have listened to this thread and the correspondence in the printed paper.

All (I think) of the main supermarkets are offering three 4pint containers for £3. Not quite as good as £1 each but a good deal better than £1.39 which is now the standard one pack price.

POWER TO THE PEOPLE copyright Wolfie Smith

[Strafin]

Tesco were already doing three for £3, which is £1 each. Sainsbury's are not doing it, and Waitrose are doing 2 for £3 which is £1.50 each, still 11p more than the £1.39 originally mentioned. According to their websites anyway.

[DJE]

I wouldn't necessarily argue that unemployment abroad is more acceptable than unemployment in the UK, but the UK is a net importer of milk (100s of millions of litres of milk per annum) and, according to .gov.uk, "[t]he UK currently imports £1.2 billion more dairy produce than it exports."

So lower milk prices would benefit the UK economy, if the money saved is instead then spent within the UK on UK-produced goods and services.

[Andy Capp]

I wouldn't necessarily argue that unemployment abroad is more acceptable than unemployment in the UK, but the UK is a net importer of milk (100s of millions of litres of milk per annum) and, according to .gov.uk, "the UK currently imports £1.2 billion more dairy produce than it exports." So lower milk prices would benefit the UK economy, if the money saved is instead then spent within the UK on UK-produced goods and services.

That is possibly true but also a contrived scenario and doesn't undermine my main point. Also, I seem to remember in our seminal business studies class, which I never pursed or properly understood, that there was an importance placed on balance of payments. It seems the UK heavily import a number of things, and I presume that comes with a risk or cost.

[JeffG]

All (I think) of the main supermarkets are offering three 4pint containers for £3.

You're going to need a pretty large family to get through 3 containers by the due date. On my own, I have a job to get through one.

[Andy Capp]

You're going to need a pretty large family to get through 3 containers by the due date. On my own, I have a job to get through one.

You can freeze it, if you have the space, but that then removes the cost saving against keeping it frozen.

[blackdog]

You're going to need a pretty large family to get through 3 containers by the due date. On my own, I have a job to get through one.

You don't need a large family, just some keen milk drinkers. Mrs B and I get through 3 or 4 pints a day (more if rice pudding is on the menu).

Not that we pay much attention to due dates, if it tastes ok it's fine by me. I often buy four 4 pint containers at a time.

[blackdog]

I wouldn't necessarily argue that unemployment abroad is more acceptable than unemployment in the UK, but the UK is a net importer of milk (100s of millions of litres of milk per annum) and, according to .gov.uk, "[t]he UK currently imports £1.2 billion more dairy produce than it exports."

So lower milk prices would benefit the UK economy, if the money saved is instead then spent within the UK on UK-produced goods and services.

The counter argument is that higher milk prices will reduce the need for imports and benefit the deficit reduction programme. In addition an increased price at the farm gate would keep some more farmers in business, reducing the number of bankruptcies and generally improving rural economies as they spend on farm improvements, additional staff, etc.

[DJE]

The counter argument is that higher milk prices will reduce the need for imports and benefit the deficit reduction programme. In addition an increased price at the farm gate would keep some more farmers in business, reducing the number of bankruptcies and generally improving rural economies as they spend on farm improvements, additional staff, etc.

But higher prices means that the money would have to come from somewhere else in the economy, the first people being the consumer.

Consumers can go bankrupt too.

And if prices are higher, and imports are still required, (i.e. unless people cannot afford more expensive milk), then the higher cost of the imported milk would not help our deficit.

The only deficit reduction programme I am aware of is the (supposed) reduction in public spending. I don't think most milk consumption falls into that category.

You are also forgetting these factors:

Higher milk prices > higher cost of living > demands for higher wages > higher manufacturing costs > less demand for products abroad > lower exports > deficit increase.

[Andy Capp]

You are also forgetting these factors:

Higher milk prices > higher cost of living > demands for higher wages > higher manufacturing costs > less demand for products abroad > lower exports > deficit increase.

I don't think it is a case of forgetting factors, in truth, I think anyone could build an economics model that shows the same outcome starting from an opposite stance. Economics is a lot more complex than this.

The point I have been trying to make is not that I advocate higher prices, only that there will be a cost somewhere. Lower costs will impact jobs; even if others are created, there is no guarantee they will replace those lost, and another factor is quality. Look how seemingly easy it is to sidestep standards in the food industry (unknown doping of meat with additives, including with other livestock) when great pressure is exerted on food costs.

I think it was Jamie Oliver who went shopping and remarked how cheap chickens were being sold for. He felt that it should not be possible to sell chicken at that price without cutting corners.