BY MICHAEL BRESLIN

Following on from an agreement between the Ulster farmers Union and independent retail stores (non-multiples), some 400 dairy farmers in County Fermanagh are at last getting a fair deal for their milk. They make up 11 per cent of the NI total and their combined herds produced 150m litres in Fermanagh.

Both sides met in the Killyhevlin Hotel this week to celebrate this new era and they were given a commitment by English MEP, Neil Parish who chairs the influential European Union agriculture committee on on going efforts to have produce labelled withtheir country origin rather than, 'packed in the UK'. In that way, he suggested, people would know where the produce originated. Mr Parish also promised that when his Committee meets again with the EU Commission in October, it would press again for a ban on Brazilian beef in the same way that the US, Australia and New Zealand had done.

But, it was a happy Maurice Hurst, the chairman of the Fermanagh committee of the Ulster Farmers Union who contrasted recent times when dairy farmers in Fermanagh were having to sell building sites to keep afloat due to milk prices in the shops at 49p per litre. (On Monday night, the shop price in the Spar store in Lisnaskea was 69p a litre).

Before moving on, Mr Hurst welcomed Mr Parish, the Farmers' Union President, Kenneth Sharkey, Charlie Hamilton who represents all the SPAR retailers in Northern Ireland, Bryan Gray, the chief executive of the NI Independent Retail Trade Association, Jim Nicholson, MEP, local Assembly member and DoE Minister, Arlene Foster, and Lady Anthony Hamilton, the President of the Women's Institutes.

There was an apology from the DARD Minister, Michelle Gildernew who wished the meeting well.

Mr Hurst said milk pricing was a very important and emotive issue: "We only have to realise that, over the last 5-6 years, dairy farming has suffered terribly. There has been no money made and, to be honest, farmers had to sell off building sites to keep going. The price of milk was not enough to cover the costs of producing milk".

Continuing, Mr Hurst, who farms in Brookeborough, suggested there were now a lot of problems in today's countryside, with people using it more and more as somewhere to sleep.

"They move into Enniskillen in the morning and take their children to school and we don't see them that much now. They don't understand farming, yet we would claim that dairy farming is the lifeblood of farming".

So, with the Ulster Farmers Union taking a proactive lead, Mr Hurst went on, protest meetings were organised outside stores and there followed meetings where promises were given by the stores that enhanced milk prices would be maintained.

Charlie Hamilton operates three SPAR stores in Tyrone and his son, David four in Fermanagh, including two Vivos in Enniskillen. He commented: "We are a very important link in the chain to the farming industry and, given my farming background, I can fully sympathise with the farmer who works hard producing top-quality food and then receives less than half the retail price. I can assure you now that the retailer is only getting a small cut of the profit".

There was a buzz of agreement when he suggested that 'the processor in the middle' was getting most of the share. After the meeting, Mr Hurst confirmed to the 'Herald' that one of the two Enniskillen-based multiples, Tesco had been approached about milk pricing, but that ASDA had not been approached. However, he said neither store presented a big problem and likewise, M & S.

"These two local stores will be taking £450,000 a week out of the local economy, which is a lot of money. Tesco were prepared to offer us 22p a litre n the Spring time but they found themselves overtaken by events".