FDBusiness.com

Nestlé and First Milk, the UK dairy farmers co-operative, have launched the Next Generation Dairy Leaders Programme, a scheme for young farmers that aims to identify, nurture and develop the next generation of dairy leaders. The two year programme will focus on a small group of the most innovative First Milk Farmers supplying to Nestlé’s factories in Girvan, Scotland and Dalston, Cumbria.

Throughout the course the attendees will attend a series of events to learn about dairy industry politics, advanced farm management, financial management and effective communication to provide them with the practical tools and confidence to step forward and take a lead. The farmers will take part in a number of activities to help improve their knowledge of the global dairy industry and give them a greater understanding of the dairy supply chain from field to consumer.

The participants will also get the chance to visit Nestlé’s UK factories to learn about the company’s supply chain and how the quality of their milk impacts production performance.

The programme forms part of Nestlé’s long-term partnership with First Milk to improve the sustainability of their farms and develop a more sustainable and efficient supply chain with a reducing environmental impact.

Mike Gallacher, chief executive of First Milk, says: “The investment from Nestle in supporting the long term sustainability of UK dairy farming goes well beyond other businesses in many areas. The launch of the Nestlé Next Generation Farmer Program demonstrates that long term commitment in providing outstanding development for our best young farmers of the future. This initiative is even more important taking place as it does against a hugely challenging context for UK farmers. It is critical that our future farmers have the best possible training and development so they can step up and compete what will be an increasingly global and competitive future.”

Robin Sundaram, responsible sourcing lead – milk buyer, Nestlé UK & Ireland, remarks: “We are very excited about this new initiative that takes the sustainability journey we are on with our farmers to a new level. We believe that this will enable our farmers to get a much wider perspective of the dairy industry and importantly the role their milk plays in the Nestlé supply chain.”

The Nestlé First Milk Partnership comprises 106 farmers in Ayrshire, Wigtownshire and Cumbria providing high quality fresh milk used in the manufacture of brands such as Kit Kat and Nescafe Café Menu. The sustainability programme is focussed on five priorities as follows: milk quality, lean farming methods (enabling a reduction in GHG emissions), environmental sustainability (soil, water and biodiversity), the next generation of farmers and animal welfare.