Plans for largest UK dairy shelved

The farmers behind what would have been the largest dairy in the United Kingdom yesterday said the sole reason for the withdrawal of their planning application at Nocton Heath, Lincolnshire, was the continued opposition of the Environment Agency

The plan for a 3,770 strong dairy herd has been controversial since the application for a much larger unit was first mooted last year. But Peter Willes, one of the applicants, told a dairy conference meeting in Glasgow last month that increasing the scale of operation was one way to survive in the competitive world of milk production.

The Environment Agency's grounds of objection relate to the risk of polluting the aquifer underlying the site as well as uncertainty about the extent of the benefits associated with the change in land use.

In their statement withdrawing their application, the applicants claimed this precautionary stance and requests for new information reflected unfamiliarity with agriculture in general and the design of the modern dairy farm in particular