Prosesu Llaeth Ffermio

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-I'm here in one of the last dairies

-in London.

-The Jones Brothers family have sold

-milk here for over a century.

-It was a Mecca for Welsh families

-to make their fortune.

-But today, it's not just London's

-milk businesses that have gone.

-The number of farms in Wales

-has also fallen.

-The dairy industry has changed

-substantially over the last century.

-Until the Milk Marketing Board

-was established in 1933...

-

-https://www.peoplescollection.wales/node/491971

-..the industry in Wales was made up

-of a collection of small farms.

-They produced enough

-for the family...

-..and a little extra to sell as

-butter and cheese in local markets.

-In just

-three quarters of a century...

-..the milk production industry

-has experienced a revolution.

-It's changed from being small

-and local to large and global.

-Gwynfryn Evans, a former manager

-at a milk production factory...

-..witnessed these changes

-first hand.

-I'm mostly familiar

-with the early 1960s.

-There had already been

-a lot of changes even then.

-Since the industrial revolution...

-..after the population migrated

-from the countryside to the town...

-..the milk had to follow.

-It was no longer sufficient for

-local farmers to supply the village.

-Many farmers moved their herds

-into the towns.

-They were supplying milk directly,

-milking in the backstreets...

-..and taking the milk

-around the streets twice a day.

-Everything changed again

-when the railways were built.

-They could milk in the countryside

-and transport it to the cities.

-Pasteurisation

-was the biggest change.

-As soon as that happened...

-..it was possible to keep milk fresh

-for days.

-As the situation improved,

-the product increased as well.

-The Milk Board was formed in 1933.

-That brought confidence

-to the industry.

-Every farmer had confidence in the

-market and was guaranteed an income.

-A cheque arrived from the Milk Board

-every month for 61 years...

-..on the correct date.

-The milk cheque transformed

-the lives of many farmers.

-One of those was Brian Thomas,

-from Gelliddu, near Carmarthen.

-I was raised on a small farm

-on the outskirts of Carmarthen.

-My father had around 25 acres

-and milked 15 cows.

-He delivered milk around town

-with his pony and trap...

-..and later on with his van

-and milk bottles.

-Until I came here...

-..I helped him with the milk round

-every morning and on weekends.

-There were 10-12 of us delivering

-milk around Carmarthen at that time.

-I think they're down to two or three

-today. Times have changed.

-When the Milk Board was created,

-they introduced lorries.

-They had a fleet of lorries

-themselves as well as contractors.

-They'd collect milk from the farms.

-That's when we saw the creation

-of the milk stand.

-There was a wood stand here,

-a stone stand there...

-..and the odd posh farmer

-built a concrete stand.

-Then the tankers came.

-That was a big change.

-The intention of the milk lorries

-was to ensure that local milk...

-..was collected and taken

-to the closest possible factory.

-There was huge opposition

-in Ceredigion.

-Small farmers were supplying

-perhaps two milk churns daily.

-They couldn't see the point

-in investing in a tank.

-I was delivering to the milk factory

-in Pensarn...

-..up until the churns

-came to an end.

-Then I had to get a milk tank

-and build a milking parlour.

-Like every other milk farm,

-it expanded.

-The facilities weren't quite enough

-so I had to reinvest.

-That's still happening now.

-Do you have to expand

-or are you choosing to?

-If you don't expand, you go

-backwards. That's the problem.

-The reason we've expanded...

-..is because my son, Gareth, does

-the farming and makes the decisions.

-He wants to earn a living for his

-family and so he's had to expand.

-One of the most disturbing times

-for Welsh dairy farmers...

-..was when milk quotas

-were introduced in 1983.

-European countries

-were given a milk quota.

-They weren't allowed

-to produce more than the quota.

-In Britain, our quota only

-corresponded to 80% of demand.

-The Government was keen to protect a

-share of the market for New Zealand.

-New Zealand was supplying

-a lot of butter to Britain.

-Completely intentionally,

-our quota was limited to 80%.

-This was to protect butter imports

-from New Zealand.

-To make things worse in Wales,

-milk production on English farms...

-..had increased around five years

-before the quota was introduced.

-As is usual in Wales, we waited

-to see what worked elsewhere...

-..before embarking on it ourselves.

-At the same time as the quotas

-were introduced...

-..Welsh farmers

-began to produce more milk.

-But the quotas they were given...

-..were based on their production

-two years previously.

-Many Welsh farmers

-were caught out at that time.

-Milk quotas

-were abolished in April last year.

-But the low price of milk

-remains a problem for dairy farmers.

-Since milk quotas were abolished,

-milk prices have varied.

-There have been long periods

-of very low prices.

-Many claim their selling price

-is less than the cost of production.

-The profit isn't as it should be.

-In my opinion, the profit goes

-to the people who sell the milk.

-It doesn't go to the producers.

-One business leading the way

-in adding value to milk...

-..is Daioni

-from Ffosyficer, Abercych.

-Going back over ten years ago,

-in 1999...

-..we turned to the organic method

-of farming.

-We were promised a lot of money,

-but many people did the same thing.

-After the first two or three years

-of becoming organic...

-..we weren't getting the price

-we were promised at the beginning.

-My husband and two friends

-decided to sell their own milk.

-Then we discovered

-it wasn't that easy.

-For the first two years or so,

-we just sold fresh milk.

-Then with help from the Assembly,

-we created Daioni flavoured milk.

-Of course, that's able to travel.

-Fresh milk lasts only days,

-but UHT lasts for months.

-That makes all the difference.

-We have to make

-constant improvements.

-We either change the flavours

-or the sizes.

-Now we're looking at the Far East.

-They're not so fussy on flavour.

-There's been a lot of fuss in China

-about milk.

-They want it in litre containers.

-They want it in litre containers.

-

-You've added value to your product.

-What's your advice to somebody who

-may be thinking of doing similar?

-There's not enough room

-in the market for everything.

-There's already cheese, milk

-and cakes out there.

-When you're starting out, you're

-full of enthusiasm and drive.

-You have to continue building

-and that costs money.

-The farm is the backbone

-of our company.

-If you start out on your own,

-it can be hard.

-You need money to sustain yourself.

-I left the kitchen

-and travelled the world.

-I've met new people, had lots of fun

-and hopefully made more money...

-..than if I'd just watched

-the milk leave in the tanker.

-At one time, there were a large

-number of milk factories in Wales.

-This number has decreased.

-This means that a high percentage

-of milk is processed outside Wales.

-The milk must travel further

-these days.

-It travels a lot further now.

-I used to deliver milk in churns

-to the factory in Pensarn.

-That was until the tankers

-were introduced.

-Now the milk is transported

-straight to London in a tanker.

-That's the difference.

-Very similar to how Welsh people

-travelled to London years ago.

-Very similar. In those days,

-milk was transported by rail.

-I remember it going to London

-by train.

-But a lot of milk was processed

-in Wales.

-There were two milk processing

-factories in Carmarthen...

-..one in St Clears

-and one in Whitland.

-Now there's none.

-Before that, our big cities,

-especially London...

-..were a Mecca

-for Welsh milk producers.

-Reminders of this era are still

-visible across the city today.

-Join me in the second half to hear

-why London's former milk workers...

-..decided to put the milky way

-into the archives of history.

-Don't go away.

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-Ceredigion has a unique relationship

-with London's milk industry.

-Although thousands of them

-relocated to the city...

-..historical records are very rare.

-Megan Hayes

-is originally from London...

-..but has now returned

-to her Ceredigion roots.

-She has written a book about

-the history of the milk industry.

-My mother and father

-were farmhands.

-My mother went to night school

-to study dairying.

-Although they both left school

-before the age of 14...

-..she was awarded a scholarship

-to do a diploma in Aberystwyth.

-But the romantic notion

-of streets of gold called.

-My father was going to London.

-They both went into service to learn

-the business before marrying.

-Afterwards, they established

-a business in Shoreditch.

-I was born in 1929 in Shoreditch.

-My mother said I was a cockney if

-the wind was blowing the right way.

-Throughout my childhood in London,

-our home was a Welsh-speaking one.

-Even the maids were from Wales.

-Our entire social life

-was based around the chapel.

-In the 1930s,

-milk sales were at their strongest.

-When war broke out,

-many people lost their businesses.

-After the war, large companies

-bought the milk rounds.

-People weren't able to make

-a decent living from their shops.

-There was then a tendency

-to sell shops...

-..and open guesthouses.

-Some kept cattle in town

-until after the war.

-Our business was saved when

-the Jews arrived in the East End.

-They wanted kosher milk.

-We had to milk the cows

-under the supervision of a rabbi.

-The milk was blessed before

-Orthodox Jews would drink it.

-There are just

-three milk businesses left.

-They sell to companies and hotels

-rather than individuals.

-At the turn of the last century,

-a member of Dai Morgan's family...

-..went to work

-in the London milk industry.

-Originally this was a dairy farm...

-..but its connection with milk

-is no more.

-Dai, there's a strong connection

-between you and London.

-Yes, there is.

-My great-great aunt

-moved to London in 1901.

-I believe she was born in 1878.

-I didn't know much about the story

-until recently.

-A relation of yours, Sarah,

-was an influential figure in London.

-Yes, as far as I can tell.

-She was a very kind woman

-and was very popular.

-They say after she passed away,

-she was brought home on the train.

-At the station, there were around

-200 people singing a hymn.

-After her passing,

-they changed the company's name.

-They changed it from City of London

-Dairies to Jones Brothers.

-I've been to the shop,

-but not for a number of years.

-Henry Jones was my grandfather

-and Sarah Morgan was my grandmother.

-My grandfather started the business

-in Jewry Street...

-

-http://www.londontown.com/LondonStreets/jewry_street_6e7.html

-..in The City of London in 1877.

-By 1898...

-..he'd sold that business and bought

-another business in Stoney Lane.

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-http://www.londontown.com/LondonStreets/stoney_lane_906.html

-Where are you today?

-Where are you today?

-

-We're still in Middlesex Street.

-The offices and the shop

-are still there.

-We've got two freehold warehouses...

-..on the edge of Limehouse

-next to Canary Wharf.

-With the demise of the milk market,

-the pricing went out the window.

-The supermarkets

-drastically cut the cost.

-Consequently, it's difficult

-with the profit margin.

-They're selling it

-extremely cheaply.

-It's quite difficult profit-wise

-because of what they're selling at.

-It's the end of an era

-for London's dairies.

-The Welsh connection with the city

-is weakening.

-However,

-the memories are as alive as ever.

-Somebody who remembers

-this golden era...

-..is one of our most famous

-presenters, Mr Dai Jones, Llanilar.

-Dai was born in London.

-Although he left aged three...

-..he spent much of his childhood

-at his parents' shop.

-It was the golden age

-of the London Welsh at the time.

-Every Welshman had a milk round.

-There was a grocers shop

-on the corner of every street.

-There was a large number

-of Welsh people.

-The Welsh were praised for

-introducing water to the English.

-They said people from Ceredigion

-put it in the milk.

-I don't believe that!

-Milk was everything.

-There was a very close-knit

-Welsh community.

-The chapel was

-at the centre of everything.

-Mam and Dad went to chapel by bus...

-..in case their customers

-thought they could afford a taxi.

-They went by bus

-and came home in a taxi.

-We walked the last half a mile.

-If a taxi was heard in the street,

-curtains would open...

-..and they'd say, "If they can

-afford to go out on Sunday night...

-"..they can pull the milk down."

-My grandfather

-worked as a main stable man.

-In those days, horses pulled

-the milk carts to the dairies.

-He was the main man

-at one of the stables.

-There were around 100 horses there.

-They'd go out on rounds every day,

-starting at 4.30am.

-During holidays,

-I'd go around with my grandfather.

-He'd go for a pint

-and I'd look after the corgi.

-He'd shout at the horses

-on the street.

-Bill! Jack!

-All the horses knew him.

-It was a very happy time.

-It was the way many families

-earned a living.

-If you were willing to work.

-You had to work.

-And you helped to carry the bottles.

-I'd learn from the boys

-how to handle the bottles.

-The first job you'd have,

-"Bring the empties, Dai."

-"Bring them up."

-You'd have one in your armpit...

-..one in your pocket,

-one down your trousers.

-These boys would have five fingers,

-five fingers, lift ten bottles.

-By the end I could do it.

-At the end, before my parents

-retired, I hurt my finger.

-I hurt this finger on a tractor

-a long time ago.

-It's thicker than the others...

-..and the devil would get stuck

-in the bottles.

-But five and five,

-that was the way the boys did it.

-The sweet memories of milk

-production in Wales and London...

-..is still important

-to many in Wales.

-The days of small-scale,

-local processing have long gone.

-Because of milk quotas...

-..we've lost three quarters of

-milk producers in England and Wales.

-We've lost 30,000

-milk production businesses.

-They've decreased in number

-from 40,000 to 10,000.

-Only a small amount of the milk

-produced in Wales is processed here.

-It all goes over the Severn Bridge

-to be processed in England.

-I think Wales loses a lot of profit

-because our milk has to travel.

-The dairy farmer

-is keeping agriculture going.

-The places

-that sell tractors and cars.

-Over the years, it's the dairymen

-who've kept them going.

-I have confidence

-in small companies...

-..specializing in local

-Welsh cheese and yogurt.

-They'll succeed.

-I hope the Welsh Government

-will help them to succeed...

-..and that they receive the support

-and encouragement they need...

-..to ensure that we have

-the best quality Welsh food.

-Milk is very important to us.

-It's still the main core

-of our business.

-But we've diversified

-quite a lot now.

-I can see a good future

-for Jones Brothers.

-We shouldn't talk the industry down.

-There is a future.

-What we produce doesn't last days.

-It has to be used straight away.

-Perhaps by making cheese and butter,

-it will keep.

-Drinking milk

-has to be produced constantly.

-Milk consumption across the world

-is increasing.

-Because of that, many people who

-export produce to this country...

-..also export it to other countries.

-There'll be more opportunities

-for young farmers in this country...

-..to produce milk.

-I think the future's bright.

-It's clear that milk is as important

-to farmers as it has always been.

-Although the relationship

-with London has weakened...

-..the milk industry's history

-lives on in Megan Hayes' book.

-Llwybr Llaethog is the only book

-that literally follows...

-..the timeline from the drovers

-to the present day.

-The name came

-from the last sentence...

-..of my parents' wedding report

-that appeared in the paper.

-It was written by one

-of the Ciliau family, Isfoel.

-The last sentence was...

-.."I wish them the favour and fate

-that follows all on the Milky Way."

-It wasn't so much the best wishes...

-..but the fact the sentence

-took for granted...

-..that success would come to them.

-I was aware my parents worked hard.

-I was aware of the fine summers

-in Llwyndafydd.

-I'm now aware of the need to record

-everything before it's forgotten...

-..from Cardiganshire's history.

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