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Dairy UK is passionate about dairy. We’re dedicated to healthy people, healthy communities and a healthy planet for future generations.
 We are a processor-led organisation representing farmer-owned co-ops and private dairy companies producing safe, nutritious and sustainable dairy foods.

Our overarching mission at Dairy UK is to promote the consumption of great tasting UK dairy products at home and on the international market.

Our members collect and process milk produced in the UK, providing employment and contributing to the UK economy.

Dairy UK relies on strong partnerships with farmers and stakeholders along the supply chain to promote the goodness of dairy.

We also work with MPs and with the government to promote a better understanding of the dairy sector and its products.

Our Work

Our key areas of focus are:

  1. Promoting the nutrition and health benefits of dairy. Dairy foods are part of dietary guidelines worldwide. They are recognised for the contribution they make to the nutrition of all age groups. We work hard to ensure that the benefits of real dairy are recognised, using science-based information.
  2. Showcasing the commitment of our sector to sustainability and by sustainability we mean the environment, the economy and society. Dairy UK plays an active role in helping its members to achieve their commitment to continuous sustainable improvement.
  3. Ensuring that Brexit works for the UK dairy sector and that the voice of dairy is heard in future trade agreements.

Underpinning all of these focus areas is our considerable expertise in food safety and quality. We work alongside our members and with organisations such as the Food Standards Agency and National Milk Laboratories to ensure that the dairy foods produced by our members meet the highest standards.

The work of Dairy UK doesn’t stop there, we touch on many areas including:

  • Assurance: our Dairy Transport Assurance Scheme guarantees that milk collection meets safety requirements, best practice and the needs of the customer. More than 90% of milk haulage capacity in this country is Dairy Transport Assurance Scheme certified, across a fleet of 1,300 vehicles and 2,000 drivers;
  • Ensuring an approved milk supply: The Assured Integrated Milk Supplier (AIMS) Scheme has been established to create a status of Assured Supplier for the participating dairies (Scheme Members) so, when trading milk between the members, the receiving dairy can be confident that the milk will meet the standards expected and so assure provenance. The scheme is for untreated bovine milk direct from farm supplied to the sector as traded, swapped or integrated haulage between the members of the scheme. All members sign up to a Code of Practice (COP), which has four sections: Milk Quality, Traceability, Farm Assurance and Sustainability, and are audited annually against the COP.
  • Employee Safety: our Occupational Health and Safety Committee works with our member companies to promote best practice in employee safety in the processing environment;
  • Asset Recovery: our Asset Protection Team return around 40,000 metal milk trolleys to their owners each year, worth an eye-watering £2.1 million.

Dairy UK Team

Dr Judith Bryans

Chief Executive
jbryans@dairyuk.org

Peter Dawson

Policy & Sustainability Director
pdawson@dairyuk.org

Colin Buck

Company Secretary and Accountant
cbuck@dairyuk.org

Sophie Clarke

Communications Manager
sclarke@dairyuk.org

Luisa Candido

Nutrition & Technical Manager
lcandido@dairyuk.org

Erica Hocking

Senior Nutrition Scientist
ehocking@dairyuk.org

Lydia Cooper

Nutrition Scientist
lcooper@dairyuk.org

Dr Emma Gregson

Environment Manager
egregson@dairyuk.org

Gary Cosby

Social Media and Digital Specialist
gcosby@dairyUK.org

Ian Wakeling

Information Manager
iwakeling@dairyuk.org

Aurelia Borenius

Office Manager
aborenius@dairyuk.org

John Hey

UK Asset Protection Manager
jhey@dairyuk.org

Peter Dick

Regional Asset Protection Manager (South)
pdick@dairyuk.org

Ian Thompson

Regional Asset Protection Manager (Midlands)
ithompson@dairyuk.org

Andy Walsh

Regional Asset Protection Manager (North)
awalsh@dairyuk.org

Dairy UK Board

Office holding Board Members

Paul Vernon

Chairman
Leprino Foods Limited

Mike Chatters

Vice-Chair
Lactalis McLelland

Nick Whelan

Vice-Chair
Dale Farm Co-operative Ltd.

Tom Atherton

Treasurer
Saputo Dairy UK

Board Members

Tim Dale

Dairy UK Farmers’ Forum

Shelagh Hancock

First Milk

Robert Graham Jnr

Graham’s the Family Dairy

Colin Kelly

Lakeland Foods

Neil Kennedy

Crediton

Lyndon Edwards

Vice-Chair
Dairy UK Farmers’ Forum

Alan Wyn Jones

South Caernarfon Creameries

Bas Padberg

Arla Foods UK