Published 25/01/2012

Compassion is delighted the Welsh government has decided to call-in the Powys mega-dairy application.

It means that the decision about whether to allow a 1000-cow industrial dairy unit is being given the scrutiny it deserves.

The result of the application at Lower Leighton Farm could help set a precedent for dairy farming in the UK. John Griffiths AM, the Welsh Assembly Minister for Environment and Sustainable Development has taken the right decision in calling it in.

Philip Lymbery, Compassion's CEO, says: "Dairying in this country is under threat from 'mega-dairies' and this decision is important not just for those in Powys who object to the application but for the UK dairy industry as a whole. It's important for the welfare of our cows and to all the people like us who think that cows belong in fields.

"Compassion urged the Welsh government to call in this decision and we are pleased that they have. We know they will consider the many strong arguments against this application."

The intensive dairy unit at Lower Leighton Farm, if allowed, would see the gradual development of a 1000-cow herd. The proposed development would be around 10 times the size of the average UK dairy farm.

The industrial unit, which would be right next to the village primary school, is a step in the wrong direction for dairying in the UK.

The decision comes hot on the heels of a Dairy Co. report that shows all systems of dairy farming currently practised in Britain can be economically viable.

There should be no need for a trend towards larger units, which limit cows' access to the fields where they belong.