18 member states paid €830m in EU to keep dairy cows

France has elected to pay its dairy farmers a coupled premium of between €34 and €86 per cow — despite leading calls to curtail the EU milk supply.

“Far from trying to curtail milk production, member states led by France are doing exactly the opposite,” said CAP expert Alan Matthews.

“While milk producers in the EU struggle with low milk prices, the EU and its member states struggle to come up with a coherent policy to address the issue. Milk prices will not recover until there is a better balance between supply and demand.”