One of the basic laws of trade is that you can afford to be fooled once by the same old story.

The Dealer was reminded of this advice when perusing the farmer survey in this week’s Irish Farmers Journal.

The fact that just 15% of dairy farmers will consider entering fixed-milk-price (FMP) schemes in the future is surely evidence that more than The Dealer had heard the dictum.

Such schemes are a vital marketing tool for the dairy industry, and could also have been a useful price-volatility-dampener for milk suppliers had they been operated in a fairer fashion. However, the headlines around farmers being burned by FMP schemes last year and this year means their reputation is shot at farm level.

The perception is that the FMP schemes are loaded in the processor’s favour; and, as we all know, perception is reality.