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Tim Bennett is a dairy farmer turned beef farmer from South Wales and former President of The National Farmers Union. He was appointed last February as chairman of DairyCo, the new dairy sector levy body which has been set up as a result of the Government’s shake-up of all the agricultural and horticultural levy bodies, and which will replace the Milk Development Council in April. Journalist Chris Walkland caught up with Tim for a chat for StraightTalk.

Out with the old and in with the new: the Milk Development Council along with other levy bodies such as the Meat and Livestock Commission, are being replaced in April with leaner, more cost effective organisations.

According to Tim Bennett, modernisation is needed and the new organisation and its work will be dynamic and exciting.

“We need a change of identity and direction and that’s what I’m going to ensure. There will be a difference but that shouldn’t be interpreted as a criticism. We want to take the good things that have been done on to the next level.”

Ultimately, Tim would like nothing more for DairyCo than to be so successful that it is no longer required: “If we can drive out all of the market failures that currently necessitate our existence then that will be the ultimate test of our success,” he says.

“We are taxing dairy farmers to fund an organisation to solve problems because something in the supply chain isn’t working. There is market failure. DairyCo has to try and mend that.” He admits he may not be able to achieve that – but it is a worthwhile goal.

Talking of levy payers as shareholders, he insists that everything DairyCo does will be measured so that it is accountable to those who are paying the levy. “We will be open and transparent.” Board meetings will travel around the country, for instance, and farmers will have an open invitation to come along and air their views.

So how will he be spending farmers’ money?

The “excellent” market information service – Datum - will be built upon, and an R&D brief and associated technology transfer program on key issues like the environment will also stay – “we need to help competitiveness,” he adds.

He also wants to do more international assessments to relate global issues back to UK dairy plc, and to increase consumer communication on dairy issues. But those who want their levy money spent on old fashioned generic advertising will be disappointed - that won’t be on the list in the first year.

“We will reduce spend in the area that the MDC called market development, or advertising. In time, we want to joint fund activity with dairy companies and we are having good discussions with the dairy supply chain on working together more cost effectively to look at school milk promotion and what I call image management – making sure we tell consumers about the good practice on farms in areas such as welfare, environment, food safety and quality.”

The budget for DairyCo will be no different from that for the MDC. The levy for the first year remains at 0.06p per litre, which gives a total of around £7m.

“The levy spend is the lowest of all sectors compared to output,” he says. “But that isn’t the point. It’s not what DairyCo takes in – it’s whether it uses the money wisely,” he concedes.

“In three years time if we don’t show there is a return then we may as well not collect the levy. We have to make a difference.” It won’t be easy to assess, but new measurement tools and procedures will be introduced.

Staff from MDC will be transferred to the new body in April and will work with the new board in delivering the new priorities. “I’ve a lot of time for Ken (Boyns) and his team. They’ve done a good job in recent years.” There are new appointments on the Board – including two non executives from outside the industry, one from McDonalds. Two thirds of the new board are dairy farmers, including First Milk’s Richard Davis and Stewart Jamieson.

Whether DairyCo under Tim Bennett performs as well as, or better, than MDC remains to be seen. But clearly the new man at the helm has the bit between his teeth and is determined to do a good, economical and beneficial job for dairy farmers. He’s also willing to be judged on his track record and suffer the consequences if he hasn’t delivered what he promises.

“If we’re not doing a good job there will be a vote to scrap it. We won’t please every dairy farmer all of the time, but we will justify our decisions and prove our value. DairyCo will be successful and will make a positive difference to dairy farmers.”