Glanbia Co-op has announced that will issue twice-per-month milk payments to suppliers in a bid to assist farmers with cashflow.

This change to payment frequency is in response to the "extreme and unprecedented inflation in farm inputs", the board of Glanbia Co-op said.

The new policy will commence with the June milk payment in July and will run for six months on a pilot basis.

Commenting on the announcement, Glanbia Co-op chair, John Murphy said:

“In this period of extreme input-cost inflation, the board believes that an early milk payment each month will assist our farmers by providing a more regular cash inflow approximately every fortnight.

"The board has agreed to implement this payment structure on a pilot basis for the second half of 2022. It will review feedback from suppliers before deciding on the payment policy for 2023.”

Meanwhile, Glanbia announced that its milk price for member suppliers has increased to 47.08c/L (including VAT) for March 2022 creamery milk supplies at 3.6% butterfat and 3.3% protein.

This includes a base milk price for March of 46.58c/L (including VAT), which is an increase of 5c/L from the February base price of 41.58c/L (including VAT), the company said in a statement.