Chapter 6: MILK PRICE BECAME THE CATALYST
The ‘Irish Indepedent’ report on June 14, 1962 that the Government was to increase the price of cigarettes by 1d per packet to pay for an increase in the price of milk to farmers.
and agrees to pay him a half-penny and, perhaps, one-penny more for his milk than he gives to suppliers living near his creamery. Although their milk is as good or perhaps better, he takes the money out of their pockets and gives it to the men living on the border line and just as convenient to other creameries. Now that is a bad system and it is in your hands to change it”.
doing so would be most detrimental to the best interests of this society. (2) That we warn all members of this society not to countenance in any way, the meeting which is to be held to-morrow. Any member, who by his presence, or otherwise supports the said meeting, shall, according to Rule 18, be guilty of conduct detrimental to this society and shall incur expulsion.
Local farmers Peter Ryan, and M. Bourke endorsed everything that Fr Murphy had said as regards the financial gains to be made by leaving the local creameries.
At a subsequent meeting of the farmers, Fr Murphy is reported to have stated “I understand that a large number of shareholders and cow-owners have left a neighbouring creamery, and I am pleased to know that by doing so they had gained financially. I always held, and hold still, that co-operation is the salvation of any country. Look at the farmers’ dairy in Newport. Was it not the means of saving the farmers of the surrounding districts from ruin. See the prices they are paying there. People are not so very foolish as to imagine that those English Companies came into this country as
The following resolutions were unanimously passed - (1) That we highly appreciate the manly spirit shown by several members of this society in leaving the local creamery, which action goes to show that the said creameries are not wanted in the locality, and that we further ask those true co-operators not to again return, no matter what inducements are thrown out, as by 81