From the Telegraph...
"...
Our dairy sector is in a similar situation to that in the Twenties, when many producers were on the verge of bankruptcy. It was not until the Milk Marketing Board was formed in 1933 that stability was established. Dairy farmers were given a secure, rolling contract to provide as much milk as they wished and paid a price to enable them to make a fair living.
The board provided a forecast a year ahead for the price farmers would be paid for their milk. This secure market and pricing continued until 1994, when the then government wound up the board. Despite warnings, neither the National Farmers' Union, nor the milk producers made any meaningful effort to save it, in the belief that they could do better in the marketplace themselves.
In the Milk Marketing Board's final year, after transport and operating costs, producers were paid 24.47ppl (pence per litre) for their milk. By 2006 the price had dropped to 17.90ppl. In spite of rising production costs, in the coming year, producers can expect very little more than they received for their milk in 1994.
Albert George"
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/letters/9415977/The-Milk-Board-once-protected-dairy-farmers.html