From June, collectors will reduce by 15% the price of buying cow's and sheep's milk from livestock farmers

From the month of June, livestock farmers of small farms in Lushnja and Fier have been notified of another drop in the price of cow's and sheep's milk, which is collected from the processing factories.

According to livestock farmers in the Myzeqe area, cow's milk from large and medium-sized farms is being collected at a price of 65 to 67 Lek without VAT per liter from 78 Lek without VAT that was before. While from small farms, milk is collected at a price of 60 Lek excluding VAT per liter.

Cattle breeders of small farms claimed that since June they have been informed by collectors that cow's milk will be bought for 55 Lek per liter without VAT or 15% less than it is sold.

A price drop has also been announced for sheep's milk, from 120 Lek per liter without VAT that is currently sold, the price is expected to drop to 100 Lek per liter without VAT or 16% less.

The drop in milk prices has also been announced by collectors in the Korça area, according to Taulant Pupa, the manager of the milk processing factory "Vita 2001" in Nizhavec, Pogradec.

"It has been announced that the price of cow's milk will drop from 60 ALL to 57 ALL per liter without VAT, sheep's milk from 140 to 130 ALL per liter without VAT, and goat's milk from 90 ALL to 80 ALL per liter without VAT", he said.

Ervin Resuli, an expert in agriculture, claims that the price of collecting cow's milk, 55 allek per liter, is equal to the nutritional cost of animals.

According to him, a farmer spends 1,200 to 1,300 lek per day just for feeding a cow, while the net profit, excluding the farmer's costs for maintaining the farm and repaying loans, is calculated to reach up to 3 euros per day or about 1 thousand euros per year. .

Ervin Resuli predicts that the drop in the price of milk, especially small milk, will lead to the shrinking of cattle herds and bankruptcies for livestock farmers.

"In 2023, when the milk of small animals produced by the farmer was sold at high prices of 120 to 180 lek, it increased the number of heads of small animals, since it was profitable for the farmer to keep cattle. For the year 2024, we have a decrease in the price of milk for small animals, but we also have a reduction in herds of small animals. If the farmer sells sheep's or goat's milk for less than 140 ALL per liter, bankruptcy is guaranteed for him", underlines Resuli.

In April, due to the conflict with the prices from the factories, no milk was bought from the large and medium-sized farms. The only ones who sold milk at a price of 60 ALL without VAT per liter were the small farms.

The reduction in the selling price forced the livestock farmers to protest twice, in defense of their production, demanding more subsidies from the Albanian state.

Despite occasional price reductions, processing factory managers claim that the price of domestically produced cow's milk is 38 cents per liter more expensive than milk imported as raw material from Slovenia, Serbia or Hungary, including taxes and transportation costs.

Both for experts and processors, the main reason for the high cost of domestic production remains the low subsidies in the country compared to the region./ Monitor