2 Sisters signs major Muller milk price remains
food waste energy deal unchanged at 25.90ppl
FOOD manufacturer 2 Sisters has
signed a £50 million deal to convert
food waste to renewable heat and
energy in all of its UK sites.
The contract between H2 Energy,
based in Liverpool, and 2 Sisters will
see animal by-products converted to
energy.
The company claimed this would
reduce the food group’s carbon
footprint by 10 per cent and deliver
significant cost savings to the food
supply chain.
Speaking at the launch of the deal,
2 Sisters executive director Philip
Wilkinson said farming’s global
challenge was to feed more than nine
billion people by 2050.
He said: “The big issue facing the
industry and feeding 9bn people is one
of land, fuel, water, welfare and the
environment.
“This particular project ticks many
of these boxes and also achieves
Government objectives at both UK and
international level.”
Value
The first phase will see 2 Sisters build
biorefineries at 10 of its locations
during the next three years in a deal
valued at £50m. These included
manufacturing, fish, meat and poultry
sites.
The first of these, 2 Sisters’ Cavaghan
and Gray site, Carlisle, would produce
up to 3,500MWh per year of electricity
and about 5,000MWh/year of
processing steam.
This was equivalent to 750 homes’
annual energy use and would provide
20 per cent of the site’s electricity
needs.
Transport
The project will also deliver carbon
savings as the biorefineries will cut
down on the amount of lorries used to
transport waste.
William Shotton, H2 Energy chief
executive, suggested the contract was
an important step in exploiting the use
of animal by-products. He claimed
these cost £30-£70 per tonne to dispose
of.
He said: “By processing this into
energy it gives waste and carbon
savings and can deliver an added value
of £150-£200/t.
“This technology supports a major step
change in providing additional profits
for the food industry.”
MULLER has confirmed its
standard milk price for February
2015 will be unchanged.
The company is offering a standard
price of 25.90 pence per litre to
Muller Wiseman Milk Group
members who are not aligned to
supermarket groups, which have
their own pricing arrangements.
The firm said it recognised dairy
farmers were operating in ‘tough
times’ and said it shared industry
concerns about the short term
outlook for farmgate milk prices.
However, Muller said it could not
rule out future cuts to reflect the
poor returns from cream and butter
products, in order for it to remain
competitive.
time for dairy farmers and we
are doing everything we can to
maintain a leading milk price,
whilst retaining our ability to
compete, particularly against
processors and farmer owned cooperatives who reduce their milk
prices with little notice.
“We are acting to ensure that our
own processing and distribution
operations are as efficient as
possible and we are placing
substantial focus on further
developing a diverse range of
dairy products for domestic and
international markets.”
Muller has also stressed its
intention to continue to operate in
full compliance with ‘the spirit and
intent’ of the voluntary code.
Muller Wiseman Dairies managing That means that farmers who
director Carl Ravenhall said:
choose to supply the company will
“In an extremely challenging
always get a full month’s notice of
environment, Muller UK and
any change in their farmgate milk
Ireland Group is working hard to price, and the flexibility to move
add value to milk produced by
elsewhere after three months’
British dairy farmers.
notice should they wish to do so.
“We recognise that this is a tough