To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what support he is making available to farmers who wish to convert to organic milk production. (129282)

It is up to individual producers to decide if they want to produce milk organically.

Aid for converting to organic farming is available under Organic Entry Level Stewardship (OELS). Under this scheme, organic farmers are now paid £60 per hectare (ha) per annum (twice that of the comparable rate of aid for conventional farmers). This is recognition of the inherent environmental benefits delivered by farming organically.

Since the launch of OELS in March 2005, some 212,452 ha of land has been entered into the Scheme¹, which is 62.5 per cent. of the target of 340,000 by the end of 2007. However, while OELS is stimulating conversion, we have yet to see how far this will contribute to the sector attaining the 70 per cent. target for indigenous produce set by the Action Plan to development organic food and farming.

¹ As of 20 March 2007.