Memmingen: farmers' protest in front of the Aldi branch

Created: 02/08/2022, 08:00

By: Tom Otto

"Aldi puts on a green cloak on our backs and drives small farmers into existential difficulties," criticizes district farmer Margot Walser (on the right in the picture) at the farmers' protest in front of an Aldi branch in Memmingen.

© Tom Otto

Memmingen - A full-page advertisement by the food company Aldi was the stumbling block for the Bavarian Farmers' Association (BBV) to call for a protest.

Last Saturday (February 5, 2022), a BBV delegation including a cow and banners took a stand against the campaign in front of the Aldi branch on Rudolf-Dieselstraße in Memmingen and warned of the consequences.

In the publication in several newspapers, Aldi had announced that it would no longer be offering milk from husbandry levels 1 and 2 in the foreseeable future in the interests of "animal welfare".

From 2024, milk from farms where the cows are kept in barns all year round and from 2030 also from farms with combined housing (barn and exercise area) should no longer be sold.

Financing the required standards drives small farms into existential difficulties

Margot Walser, the district farmer of the BBV district in Unterallgäu, who organized the protest, is outraged by the Aldi campaign.

"We have been producing high-quality food for decades, which is also constantly checked, and now Aldi wants to tell us how we should keep our animals," says Walser.

Marlies Berchtold, the BBV board member responsible for small farms, even predicts a veritable dying of farms among small farmers.

"A good half of the farms in the Allgäu will close their businesses because they cannot finance the required standards," says the dairy farmer.

Helmut Mader, managing director of the BBV office in Erkheim, even accuses Aldi of "green washing".

The group is not really concerned with high-quality food,

but only an image campaign in competition with the other food chains.

Aldi has money for an advertising campaign, but not for the farmers and is using its market power to keep the farmers and dairies prices down.

Various influencing factors affect the milk price

Aldi Süd rejects the criticism that the milk price is not set by the company, but has various influencing factors, such as the world market price.

With a per capita consumption of almost 50 kilograms in 2020, the German market is also a lucrative market for foreign producers.

In addition, Aldi is not allowed to set the prices and revenues for the farmers for antitrust reasons.

Edeka and Netto had already announced similar steps in the past, and Edeka wants to do without milk from husbandry group 1 this year.

As long as different rules apply in other EU countries than here, we will lose out.

Helmut Mader, Managing Director of the BBV office in Erkheim

Helmut Mader sees this as proof that Aldi now has to follow suit with this image campaign.

But if you read the small print in the Aldi ad, you will learn that the announcement only applies to the group's so-called own brands.

Milk, for example from other Eastern European countries, will continue to be offered, even if this product does not even meet the normal German production standards and no company asks about animal husbandry there.

"As long as different rules apply in other EU countries than here, we'll lose out."

Livelihood of smallholders sacrificed in favor of free trade

Marlies Berchtold sees a need for politics here, which up until now has sacrificed the livelihood of smallholders in favor of the principle of free trade.

Together with her fellow board members, she calls for labeling of origin for milk and dairy products in processing companies such as dairies.

"If our good Allgäu milk is mixed with cheap foreign milk, consumers no longer have the opportunity to promote and support quality and regionality".