Farmers spill millions of litres of milk in protest at low price

Описание: (16 Sep 2009)
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1. Wide tracking shot of tractors and milk containers spraying milk over field
2. Farmers gathered in field with vehicles, pull out to wide of field
3. Zoom in to tractors spraying milk
4. Close-up of milk being sprayed, pull out to show lines of spraying vehicles
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5. Various of milk being sprayed
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6. Wide of milk being sprayed
STORYLINE:
Belgian farmers on Wednesday dumped three (m) million litres (790-thousand gallons) of fresh milk onto fields in the south of the country as part of a protest against low milk prices which they claim are pushing them toward financial ruin.
Milk farmers' cooperatives said world prices had dropped so low that they had to sell at half the production cost, leaving increasing numbers of farmers unable to pay their bills.
To highlight the crisis, farmers driving some 300 tractors and milk containers sprayed milk across fields near the town of Ciney - a spillage representing the loss of a day's worth of milk production in the southern half of Belgium.
Milk prices have fallen by 40 percent since spring, according to EU farmers group Copa, which warns that without EU intervention, farmers could lose 10 billion euros - 14 (b) billion US dollars - in income.
The Belgian farmers were joined by colleagues from around the EU on Wednesday.
Growing frustration with the economic downturn has led to widening protests across the EU in recent weeks.
On Tuesday, farmers closed Belgian border crossings to the Netherlands and Germany to push demands for higher prices and some milk farmers in France and other EU nations have halted deliveries.

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