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Cattle farmers on Saturday threatened to dump milk at the presidential palace starting January 10 if the cheesemakers stay true to their threat to shut shop next year.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a matter of survival,\u201d they said in an announcement.<\/p>\n
The development comes amid an escalating spat between halloumi producers and the government over the percentage of sheep and goat milk required by law to be used in the country\u2019s national cheese.<\/p>\n
In October, the agriculture ministry issued a decree raising the ratio of goat and sheep milk in halloumi from 10 per cent to 19 per cent. Dairy farmers called it a disastrous move, saying there is not enough of this milk to meet these specs.<\/p>\n
After weeks of failed negotiations, the cheesemakers association on Friday announced they would close all dairy farms in protest starting on January 10. The association represents some 90 per cent of the industry.<\/p>\n
Cattle farmers then held a snap meeting and announced on Saturday that if the cheesemakers close shop, then starting January 10, any milk they produce will be taken to the presidential palace.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe government will then have to take care for processing and disposing it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The cattle farmers said this was \u201ca matter of survival\u201d because with the new milk ratio, this meant less cow milk would be used.<\/p>\n
They suggested the government had the interests of \u201cmillionaire investors\u201d at heart on the negotiations over halloumi\u2019s PDO (protected designation of origin), saying the breeds selected were linked to those with the big sums of money.<\/p>\n
Effectively, the government decree is scrapping the use of cow milk in halloumi and creating more demand for goat and sheep milk producers, the announcement said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe production and distribution of cow\u2019s milk cannot be based on the logic of its connection with the production of sheep and goat\u2019s milk,\u201d they added, noting that consumers had a choice and should be able to choose the halloumi of their liking.<\/p>\n
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Cattle farmers are threatening to dump milk at the presidential palace starting January 10 if cheesemakers follow through with their plan to shut down next year. This comes after a dispute between halloumi producers and the government over the required percentage of sheep and goat milk in the national cheese. The agriculture ministry issued a decree raising the ratio of goat and sheep milk in halloumi, which dairy farmers argue is not feasible due to a lack of supply. The cheesemakers association announced they would close all dairy farms in protest, prompting cattle farmers to take action. They claim that the government is prioritizing the interests of wealthy investors and that the new milk ratio will result in less cow milk being used in halloumi production.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":629,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[175,3,176,120],"class_list":["post-628","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cyprus","tag-cows-milk","tag-cyprus","tag-halloumi","tag-picks4"],"acf":{"keyphrase":"","keywords":"","sourceimg":"","country-category":""},"yoast_head":"\n