THE Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) has blamed the “persistent discounting of milk by retailers” for the sale of Dairy Crest’s liquid business to Muller Wiseman.

RABDF chairman Ian Macalpine said: “The proposed deal is a fait accompli – where can cost savings be made?”

Dairy Crest said the sale was conditional on approval of the competition authorities and that could potentially take up to a year.

Mr Macalpine said: “We sincerely hope that, if the deal goes ahead, it will not have any adverse impact on farm gate milk price.

“It should, in theory, take costs out of the system. However, they will be to the benefit of Muller Wiseman, unless they are passed on to the retailer through more competitive marketing.”

But NFU dairy board chairman Rob Harrison said he saw the deal as “a positive step” in building a sustainable dairy sector.

The announcement of the sale comes after news Muller Wiseman and Dairy Crest were both set to keep their December milk price, with First Milk dropping their prices by a further 1.4ppl.

However, in recent months the milk price has crashed as world supply and demand factors hit home.

Mr Macalpine said RABDF will be taking the issue to Westminster.