Market forces

Seafood firm Young’s proposed closure of its Pinney’s site in Annan with the loss of 450 jobs is another example of the power of the supermarkets. They have forced the price of milk down so that is now probably the cheapest liquid to buy – cheaper than bottled water, fruit juice etc.

We the consumers benefit from the low price of one of our everyday essentials but at what cost? The Island of Islay used to have many dairy farms but they all closed down because the transport/ferry cost to get the milk to the mainland made it impossible to meet the market price dictated by the supermarkets.

A few years ago I heard about a Scottish farmer who thought he was going to supply red lettuces to M&S. When their inspector came to check the crop he was told they were too small and that he should try again next year! He ended up putting notices at the roadside to try and sell some of them.

MIKE MCKINNELL Hillview, Blackhall, Edinburgh