Arla's planned dairy closure at Settle is ‘devastating blow’ to Yorkshire Dales

The global dairy company and cooperative owned by over 9,000 dairy farmers said it would be entering into a period of consultation with its employees at the plant, which has produced milk, butter and mozzarella cheese.

Arla said the proposals "form part of our strategy to strengthen our manufacturing network and futureproof dairy production in the UK". The company, which has its headquarters in Stourton, Leeds, has announced a large investment in its Lockerbie site in Scotland. It comes just a month after Saputo Dairy UK said it had made a large investment in its Nuneaton site and intended to shut its Wensleydale Creamery plant in Kirkby Malzeard, relocating the work carried out there to the West Midlands, leading to fears for 80 jobs. The village has been a centre for cheese-making for more than a century, when a group of local farmers launched a dairy there.

The Settle dairy opened in 1963 and hopes for its future were high after Arla announced in 2020 it was to switch production of its Lactofree alternative milk range to the UK as part of a £25m investment at the North Yorkshire plant. Arla said the move would see Settle’s processing capacity to grow by an extra 120 million litres of milk a year to a total of 305 million litres.

However, last year the creamery was hit by complaints from residents in nearby properties over a smell of “weeks old sour milk”, with Arla saying it had seen an “unexpected increase in a harmless odour”, that it working to rectify.

Deanne Ferguson, GMB organiser, called on Arla and all stakeholders to engage in “full and transparent discussions” about the future of the workforce and to consider all available alternatives to compulsory redundancies.

She said: “If Arla's proposal to close goes ahead, it will be a devastating blow for the dedicated workers at Settle and for the local community which relies on this key employer.

“It will have a significant economic and social impact. GMB will stand side by side with members to make sure they are fully supported throughout this difficult period. We will now begin urgent discussions with Arla to explore all possible options to protect jobs. We call Arla and all stakeholders to engage in full and transparent discussions about the future of the workforce and to consider all available alternatives to compulsory redundancies.”

Ripon and Skipton MP Julian Smith described Arla’s proposals as “very bad news” and said he had urged North Yorkshire Council to “engage rapidly to provide support”. Mr Smith said: “"I am deeply disappointed by the proposed closure of the Arla site in Settle. My priority is to ensure that we explore all possible avenues to protect jobs affected by this decision. I stand ready to work with Arla, the council, and other stakeholders to mitigate the impact on our community."

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