Sweden! - International Federation of Agricultural Journalists

16 SOLUTIONS FOR A GREEN FUTURE
Milk – animals and dairy farmers
the last 5 years the prices paid to farmers
have varied between 2.75 and 3.50 SEK per
kilo of milk.
The majority of the Swedish milk
producers deliver their milk to dairy
cooperatives which they co-own with other
farmers and of which they are members.
The largest cooperatives are Arla Foods,
Norrmejerier, Milko and Skånemejerier.
Gefleortens and Falköpings are examples
of two smaller dairies.
In recent years, a number of smaller
dairies have been established which are
owned by a small group of farmers who
have merged together.
Export and import
Foreign trade in dairy products constitutes
5–6% of the value of the total trade
in food supplies. The Swedish import of
dairy products is more than double as large
as exports. Milk, cream and yoghurt are
the biggest products within both import
and export. Sweden clearly imports more
cheese than it exports.
Problems
The problem of profitability within milk
production means that many dairy farms
in Sweden have been closed down and as a
result the production of milk has decreased
greatly in the last few years. Many dairy
cooperatives suffer from overcapacity and
a number of dairies have closed down.
Competition for milk raw materials has
grown.
It is the law in Sweden that all cows are
able to graze outdoors in the summer. The
law is much debated and the critics uphold
that the law leads to heightened costs and
worse competition for Swedish dairy farmers
compared to other European farmers. l
Contacts
Svensk Mjölk (www.svenskmjolk.se) – a Swedish dairy farmers association
Husdjursföreningarna (Skånesemin, Svenska Husdjur, Växa Halland, Freja Husdjur, Rådgivarna i Sjuhärad,
Hansa Husdjur, Norrmejerier) – animal husbandry associations
LRF (www.lrf.se) – Swedish Farmers Association
Jordbruksverket (www.jordbruksverket.se) - Swedish Board of Agriculture
Sveriges Mjölkbönder (www.sverigesmjolkbonder.se, Chairman Stefan Gård Telephone: +46 (0) 70 62
222 33) – Swedish Dairy Farmers Association
Arla Foods (www.arlafoods.se, press contact: +46 (0) 70 88 44 290) – a dairy farmers cooperative
Norrmejerier (www.norrmejerier.se, press contact Kristina Stiernspetz: +46 (0) 70 2603740) – a dairy
farmers cooperative in northern Sweden
Milko (www.milko.se, press contact: +46 (0) 70 337 17 17) – a dairy farmers cooperative in central
Sweden
Skånemejerier (www.skanemejerier.se, +46 (0) 40 31 39 00) – a dairy farmers cooperative in Skåne,
southern Sweden