Cow breeders call for halloumi meeting with president

Cow breeders on Friday called for a meeting with President Nikos Christodoulides to discuss outstanding problems over halloumi production.

In a letter addressed to Christodoulides, the cow breeders highlighted the significant investments made in the dairy sector, including the utilisation of European funds, which they believe should be recognised.

They stressed that the development of halloumi has been largely supported by the dairy farming industry and expressed their opposition to any policies that would marginalise their contribution.

The farmers said that on June 27 they learned through the media that Agriculture Minister Maria Panayiotou planned to hold meetings with stakeholders to issue a new decree that would determine the minimum quota of goat and sheep milk required for the production of Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) halloumi.

According to the decree, from July 10 to August 15, the goat and sheep milk quota in halloumi production would remain at 25 per cent. From August 16 to February 15, 2025, the quota would be 19 per cent, and from February 16 to July 9, 2025, it would increase to 30 per cent.

The dairy farmers argue that the milk quotas set out in the new decree and the proposed policies are detrimental to the dairy farming and processing sectors.

“You promised during meetings with stakeholders that your goal was to secure and increase halloumi exports, maintain and grow employment, ensure the availability of all types of milk, and generally support the development of the dairy sector. This is not the case,” they wrote in the letter to Christodoulides.

The letter also recalled a public promise made late last year by the agriculture ministry, which said it would be ready to monitor goat and sheep milk production using GPS technology.

“Unfortunately, the government has failed to deliver on this promise, and the absence of monitoring appears deliberate to allow the issue decrees based on ‘manipulated’ figures and methodologies,” the letter said.

Finally, the cow breeders stressed that until a definitive solution is found, the quotas in the decrees “should be set in a way that ensures no surplus of cow, goat, or sheep milk.”

At the same time, goat and sheep farmers said that “continuous government decrees have created disorder in halloumi production and uncertainty in the sector.”

On Thursday, the goat and sheep farmers met Panayiotou to discuss the potential changes to the ratios of milk used for the production of PDO halloumi.

“We left the ministry feeling deep disappointment, anger, a profound sense of injustice, and growing pessimism about our work and future, especially for our children and the young people who made the unfortunate decision to invest in goat and sheep farming,” they said.

The farmers then called for a decree that would cover the entire five-year extension period from 2024 to 2029 given by the European Commission, proposing a gradual increase in the goat and sheep milk quota used in halloumi production by 5 per cent each year.