Written Evidence submitted by The Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF)(LS0022)

The Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) is the only UK charity focused on practical dairy farming, helping to create a profitable and sustainable sector. 

Labour on dairy farms is something the RABDF is passionate about, working hard to understand the challenges and identify possible solutions to the labour challenges. Since 2014 it has conducted four surveys and submitted various reports to the Government highlighting the labour challenges.  

What is the foreign labour requirement on UK dairy farms? 

• EU labour is an essential workforce on UK dairy farms, with almost half of dairy farmers (42.1%) completing a recent survey1 employing foreign workers in the last five years. 
• It is the larger, more intensive operators tending to require foreign labour. 
• We estimate the industry needs access to about 650 foreign dairy workers a year on dairy farms alone. This is based on 11% of dairy farms in the UK employing foreign workers5, workers staying employed for an average of two years1 and there being 12,209 producers in the UK4.

Impact of a lack of foreign workers 

• In recent months, the situation with foreign worker shortages has escalated across many agricultural sectors, adding additional strain on the dairy industry. The lack of foreign workers extends beyond the farm gate, with milk and meat processing plants affected and HGV drivers collecting fresh milk from farms. 
• Some farmers have already been forced to discard their milk because of a lack of HGV drivers. 
• There is a concern we could see a repeat of the pig industry in the dairy industry if meat processing plants cannot take the same volume of cattle. Over half of all British beef sold in the UK comes from the dairy herd. Recent figures from the British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) estimate that over 60% of staff in these factories are of non-UK origin. 

What the industry is doing to address the issue

The dairy industry is looking at long-term solutions, including education programmes in schools, working with colleges and universities to promote dairy farming as a career, and working with farmers to look at ways to make working conditions and shift patterns more favourable for the domestic workforce. However, this takes time, which is why we have repeatedly called on the MAC to allow the industry to have access to foreign workers in the short term, but without any resolution from them. Instead, we find they often dismiss our survey findings and do not offer any suggestions on how they would like us to demonstrate the labour shortage on dairy farms. 

Conclusion 

As I hope our evidence will highlight, access to foreign labour is vital for the continued function of our industry. There still appears to be confusion between seasonal workers who are critical in some food-producing sectors compared to the skilled/highly skilled permanent needs of dairy farming. Without continued access to this skilled workforce in the short term, significant consequences will be seen on the sector's economic viability.  

Introduction

Dairy consumption is increasing in the UK (cheese risen by 15.7%, butter 16.1% and yoghurt 4.1% during the pandemic). With demand for dairy products continuing, we must have a solid workforce that can help keep our dairy farms operating and meet the demand.

This extends beyond farms and includes workers in dairy and meat processing plants and the haulage industry- a key element needed for milk collection. 

It is also essential to distinguish dairy workers from 'seasonal' workers in other agricultural sectors. Worryingly, there still appears to be confusion between seasonal workers who are critical in some food-producing sectors compared to the skilled/highly skilled permanent needs of dairy farming. 

Reliance on foreign labour on UK dairy farms

EU labour remains an important source of labour on UK dairy farms, with almost half of dairy farmers (42.1%) completing a recent survey1 employing foreign workers in the last five years. Of those using foreign labour, 74% said they did because they cannot recruit from the UK. 

There is an increasing reliance on foreign workers due to the changing nature of the UK dairy industry. While dairy producer numbers in GB have fallen by 27% between 1996 and 2018 (2.6m cows to 1.9m4), milk output has remained, reaching its highest annual figure of 15 billion litres since 19904. This is because we are seeing herd sizes increase as well as cows producing more milk.

It is these larger, more intensive operators having an increasing reliance on foreign labour. Their dairy operations tend to function 24/7, with employees often working shift patterns. 

Foreign workers are fulfilling these skilled roles due to the unsociable hours and the nature of the work, which are frequently not accepted by our domestic labour force5 but are not uncommon in Eastern Europe.

In a 2021 RABDF survey of those employing foreign labour, 74% said they did because they can't recruit from the UK. Other reasons included their flexibility in working unsociable hours (66%) and having a better work ethic (58.5%), which supports our previous thoughts. 

Our research indicates a poor image of working on dairy farms, with many UK workers simply not liking the thought of some features of dairy farming, the need for flexible hours and working outside. 

Solutions to the labour shortage 

We have conducted extensive research on the use of foreign labour on UK dairy farms over the past seven years. Throughout this time, the image of dairy farming and particularly the long and unsociable working hours, has been raised as the main limiting factor for recruiting from the domestic workforce.  

Already the industry is working on some solutions. However, it is important we still have

access to foreign workers in the short term while some of the medium to long-term solutions to kick in. 

In terms of the number of foreign workers needed, we estimate this to be about 650 foreign dairy workers a year. This is based on 11% of dairy farms in the UK employing foreign workers (figure from 2017 labour survey), workers staying employed for an average of two years1 and there being 12,209 producers in the UK4.

Solutions being worked on include: 

• Promoting dairy farming as a career choice to the next generation beginning in primary schools and reinforcing throughout secondary schools and colleges. Already we have endorsed a book aimed at primary aged children launch called Milly Cow Gives Milk which outlines what it takes to produce milk, how it is produced and the importance of dairy products as part of a healthy diet. 

• Setting up an industry task force to address the image of dairy farming. This will cover aspects such as: 
• How to successfully implement shift patterns 
• Better recruiting techniques
• Use of technology to reduce labour input 
• Exploring alternative business structures. For example, outsourcing some of the management on farm by using dedicated heifer rearers, contractors for silage making etc. This may not be possible in peri-urban environments. 

• Working with land-based colleges to promote dairy specific courses. RABDF communicates with all the land-based colleges and has collaborated with them to host all dairy-based course information on the RABDF website. The RABDF website is recognised as the place to go to get information about all dairy educational courses. This is something we plan to use more to promote dairy specific courses and generate more skilled labour from within the UK. 

• Promoting dairy farming as a career to non-farmers. Post-Covid, we plan to work with inner-city youth group On Side Youth Zone to take inner-city children onto the farm to showcase the diverse range of jobs in dairy farming and how the industry can offer a viable, successful, and fulfilling career. We have also worked with careers officers in the West Midlands by inviting them to the national Dairy Tech event, demonstrating the broad career options on offer. 

• Technology. The use of technology and robotics has its place on dairy farms and can remove some mundane tasks such as scraping cubicles and ease feeding. However, there is not the technology available currently to replace labour.

• Apprenticeship Schemes. Apprentices already make up a valuable part of the workforce on dairy farms, with over half (57.5%) of RABDF 2021 survey respondents employing an apprentice and 86.5% saying they would consider taking on an apprentice. Of those who would not consider an apprentice, the main reason was the lack of time to teach them new skills. Promoting apprenticeship schemes and building on existing ones in the industry is a must. 

• Entrepreneurs in Dairying Course – Designed to give motivated individuals the skills and confidence to start their own business in producing dairy. Now in its eighth year, almost 300 applicants have completed the course, all from varying backgrounds within or related to the industry. The course has been integral to the students, providing them with the contacts and connections to go on and establish businesses. 

Conclusions

• RABDF appreciates the dairy sector needs to address its underlying lack of attractiveness as a career option to the domestic workforce. However, there is no short-term fix for this. It will require a change in practices on dairy farms, education and promotion of dairying farming as a career to non-farmers, which all take time. 

• While work is ongoing to educate, inform and recruit from outside the industry, we still need access to this skilled foreign labour force (estimated about 650 foreign workers a year) to allow our industry to keep functioning and meet the increasing demand for dairy products. 

• In addition, there is a heavy requirement for foreign labour in other areas that have a knock-on effect on the sector. This includes shortages in abattoirs, milk processing plants, HGV lorry drivers leading to non-collections etc.  

• The technology is not there to replace labour on our farms at the moment. Farmers that have invested in milking robots, for example, will admit it doesn't reduce the workload with skilled operators still required to use, maintain and monitor the kit.

The RABDF is committed to working towards the long-term solutions and educating the next generation starting in primary schools of the varied and rewarding career choice dairy farming offers. 

We hope this information demonstrates the importance of foreign labour on UK dairy farms and in the wider sector. 

For more information on Access to Labour in the UK Dairy Industry including surveys, reports and previous submissions, visit https://www.rabdf.co.uk/labour

References

1. RABDF survey 2021 

2.       https://www.rabdf.co.uk/latest-news/2021/2/16/consumers-turn-to-dairy-in-covid-crisis-as-retail-sales-boom

3. RABDF survey 2016

4. Uk Dairy Industry Statistic May 2020 file:///C:/Users/user/Downloads/SN02721%20(3).pdf 

5. 2017 EU YouGov survey https://www.rabdf.co.uk/labour

October 2021