Gloucestershire council criticised for running ‘milk snatcher’ campaign

The council has been criticised following the launch of the ‘Swaps in Seconds’ campaign, which council leaders claim could help reduce people’s carbon footprints.

The campaign’s chief proposer, councillor David Gray, said: “Dairy is one of the big producers of methane, so our suggestion is, every so often, instead of having milk with your coffee, you have oat milk or soy, and that way make a small difference in the overall impact of your lifestyle on the environment.”

The initiative encourages residents to take small actions to combat climate change, such as replacing cow’s milk with alternatives like almond or oat milk.

Other suggestions from the initiative include swapping a new item for something second-hand, turning electrical devices in your home off or on standby, switching to black coffee or tea, or reducing sugar.

Attack on dairy farmers

According to the council’s website, Gloucestershire is a ‘predominantly agricultural county’ with the Vale of Gloucester ‘traditionally associated with dairy farming with pasture for beef plus orchards’.

The Countryside Alliance, which campaigns for farmers, described the move as an attack on freedom of choice and the dairy industry, urging the council to drop the demand.

Mo Metcalf-Fisher, director of external affairs at the Countryside Alliance, said: “At a time when our farmers are under immense pressure because of the family farm tax, it is astonishing that Liberal Democrats in Gloucestershire would choose to prioritise attacking dairy farmers in this way.

“It is of no business whatsoever what the public choose to consume and councils should get on with fixing the basics.”

“Dairy is perfectly sustainable, and when it comes to ethics, many dairy alternatives have significant negative factors to consider. We urge Gloucestershire Council to ditch this bizarre milk snatcher campaign and instead, support all local farmers at this difficult time.”

Frustrated farmers

Local farmers have also expressed anger, with dairy farmer Jacob James describing it as “extremely frustrating”.

Speaking to the local BBC, he said: “Unfortunately emissions are a given no matter what route we go down, and we should be looking at getting the best bang for our buck in terms of the nutrients produced from those emissions,” he said.

Mr James continued: “I think if we could look at thinking for ourselves, we can see that we have a plentiful supply of water here and also land that is best at growing grass.

“Grass is the primary driver of high-quality milk production, and the cows actually fertilise their own land.”

The farmer added that alternative milks are often shipped thousands of miles, which causes pollution.

The row comes after 11 other local authorities, including Cornwall, Portsmouth City, Suffolk and North Northamptonshire, all rejected pushes towards compulsory veganism, favouring a Countryside Alliance-backed motion.

It aims at supporting local farmers by ensuring local authorities proactively source local, seasonal produce, explicitly including meat and dairy at council events, while encouraging residents to ‘shop locally’ and urging them to take advantage of ‘home-grown, affordable, nutritious food’, irrespective of dietary preference.

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