The farmers of the MGN Milk Cooperative Lower Austria, suppliers and co-owners of the NÖM dairy, want to maintain the supply stop to Spar until an agreement is reached in the price negotiations. Leopold Gruber-Doberer, managing director of MGN, referred to this on Monday in response to an APA request. All other retail chains had accepted “the necessary price increases”. Deliveries to Spar stopped on Monday last week.
NÖM AG, based in Baden, is the second largest dairy in Austria after Berglandmilch. It is owned 65 percent by Raiffeisen-Holding Niederösterreich-Wien and 35 percent by MGN, whose around 2,500 members supply NÖM with raw milk.
The NÖM would continue to be supplied with raw materials by the farmers, said MGN managing director Gruber-Doberer. However, the dairy was ordered not to serve the Spar supermarket chain. “If there is no agreement, the delivery stop will remain in place,” the MGN managing director made clear.
The Raiffeisen-Holding Niederösterreich-Wien, as NÖM’s majority owner, stated in response to APA’s request that it had “full confidence in the management of NÖM”. “We do not interfere in operational decisions. We hope for a quick agreement in the interests of dairy farmers and consumers,” it said in a written statement.
Spar does not want to accept a general price increase
In a statement on Monday, Spar pointed out that NÖM had demanded a general price increase in the double-digit percentage range on the entire range under threat of an immediate delivery stop, regardless of whether this was understandable and therefore justified for the respective product. This was not accepted in the interests of Austrian consumers.
Negotiations would only take place with representatives of NÖM AG, emphasized Spar. It has been proven that the prices for animal feed, such as corn, sugar, energy and various raw materials, such as packaging material, have recently fallen. “Therefore, in the interests of domestic consumers, we cannot accept a general, undifferentiated and incomprehensible price increase on the entire NÖM range.” For selected products, such as butter, “for which a price increase was understandable, we were able to agree with the local dairies, and also with NÖM, on a corresponding purchase price increase.”
Supply of dairy products “certainly guaranteed”
The retail chain is “ready at any time to continue discussions on an equal footing,” it said. It was emphasized that the supply of Austrian dairy products was “in any case guaranteed”. Spar is supplied with regional or Lower Austrian milk and milk products from other dairies in the Lower Austria/Vienna region.
The farmers received support on Monday from the Lower Austrian Farmers’ Association. Director Paul Nemecek is examining possible legal steps in the interests of local NÖM dairy farmers, it was emphasized in a press release. The VP National Council member Johannes Schmuckenschlager, President of the Lower Austrian Chamber of Agriculture, also showed solidarity. “Our dairy farmers deliver the highest quality and do great work 365 days a year! That absolutely deserves more appreciation.”
