What is a Milk Dealer

[Rabbit B]

Oh stanmapstone and Christopher,

How right you are! well done chaps!

There you are Sue, they have the complete history of dairy farming at their fingertips!   All clever stuff here!

Rabbit B 

[stockman fred]

Grandad used to reminisce about the days before the MMB. I think the economics of dairy farming were reasonable at the beginning of the 20th century (in spite of the general ag. depression), but there were a series of aggressive dairy takeovers which led to industrial scale dairy companies reducing the price they would pay for the milk to below production cost. In 1922, low prices led to the formation of a milk "pool" organised by the NFU and Nat. Federation of Dairymen and after a lot of dissension, most of the distribution companies eventually agreed to buy from the pool. If I remember rightly, the agreement broke down, leading to the formation of the MMB in the 30s.
From a farmer's point of view, a big  benefit of the MMB was that it evened out the transport costs so that a farmer in Cornwall could compete with one on the outskirts of London- milk production then became economical in the grass growing regions such as the West.
After the MMB was dissolved, the situation rapidly reverted to the old ways, hence the reduction in dairy farms since 1994. We sold up the dairy in 2000 as it was no longer viable to produce milk.
Fred

[Rabbit B]

Hi Fred,

How right you are, the old MMB had a lot going for it! You should see the paperwork that there is now! 

I still have a Farmer in the family, but he has beef and sheep.  There is a small 'forest of paper' for everything now, even more than there used to be!

I'll bet that you miss having the cows around, but not all the work!  All the dairy farms I used to go to, have gone from round here sadly.

Rabbit B 

[slewis]

Hello all
   Thank you so much this information, and the photo of the milk run is great, that has gone in my milk dealers scrap book.
                Thanks again kind regards Sue 

[Aulus]

I also remember driving in a pony and trap during the war with the milk churns which had to be left by the farm gate half a mile away, so that the tanker could pick up the milk!

It's still quite a common sight in NW England at least that at farm entrances there is a raised platform, probably usually around 8'x4' and 3' or 4' high.  I remember when you used to see the milk churns on them, awaiting collection, but I expect most people nowadays wouldn't know what they were for, even if they noticed them while driving by at 60 miles an hour. 

I think (from listening to the Archers!) that dairy farms now have bulk tanks, and the milk tankers now drive right up to the dairy and pump from the bulk tanks straight into the tanker.  I can't remember the last time I saw milk churn.  They've gone the way of haystacks ...  <sigh>

Fortunately round here in Lancashire we still have quite a few dairies (Lancashire cheese territory, centred on Beacon Fell, north-east of Preston - one of the UK's cheese PDOs), so there are still dairy cows in the fields.

[willow154]

When I was little (in late 50s and 60s) we would go and stay at my grandmother's house in a small french town. There was a small supermarket, but lots of people still went with their miniature milk churns to queue outside the little farm (a walled town farm) and have their  'still warm' milk ladled into their churns.
Lovely memories.
Paulene

[Rabbit B]

I also remember driving in a pony and trap during the war with the milk churns which had to be left by the farm gate half a mile away, so that the tanker could pick up the milk!

It's still quite a common sight in NW England at least that at farm entrances there is a raised platform, probably usually around 8'x4' and 3' or 4' high.  I remember when you used to see the milk churns on them, awaiting collection, but I expect most people nowadays wouldn't know what they were for, even if they noticed them while driving by at 60 miles an hour. 

I think (from listening to the Archers!) that dairy farms now have bulk tanks, and the milk tankers now drive right up to the dairy and pump from the bulk tanks straight into the tanker.  I can't remember the last time I saw milk churn.  They've gone the way of haystacks ...  <sigh>

Fortunately round here in Lancashire we still have quite a few dairies (Lancashire cheese territory, centred on Beacon Fell, north-east of Preston - one of the UK's cheese PDOs), so there are still dairy cows in the fields.

Hi Aulus,

Oh I remember that well, the churns on the side of the road! 

When I worked in Veterinary Medicine back in the 70's, we had loads of dairy farms in this area, yes the milk was collected by Tanker.  But there were so many cows and different breeds about!  Now they are all Simmental or Belgian blue or Charolais,  and almost of the dairy farms have gone!

I am a fan of Farmers markets.  Food produced in this Country will soon be a thing of the past unless we all insist on British milk, butter and cheese.   

I have been doing that for years, it puts the fun back into shopping to support our local producers.  The food is great as well!  I buy everything from Soda bread [make my own for all the rest] all the meat, apples, vegetable, strawberries in season, icecream and goats milk fudge which is the best I have tasted, and proper sausages and game in season!

My son is a Farmer and strangled by the bureaucratic red tape, as they all are.  Our farmers are the best in the world!  

So sorry I got carried away!

Rabbit B 

PS there is nothing quite like the taste of fresh milk from the bulk tank after a hard day!

[DNewtonCarter]

Hi. I'm a historical novelist looking up information about the difference between milk dealers and dairies when I came across this post. I was reading the replies, hoping to find an answer; but, I did find that I knew a little more than some already. I am researching the G E Koeber farm and milk dealer in Western Massachusetts. I have found that milk dealers are independent farmers who sell straight from the farm and may have a milk route, or sell to a dairy coop that pasteurizes, homogenizes, bottles, and distributes the milk for them.