Woolworths announces it will stop selling $1-a-litre milk

Woolworths will stop selling $1-a-litre milk, bringing an end to a controversial move which has been blamed for savaging Victorian farmers’ viability.

The bargain basement price of milk has been blamed in part for ongoing hardship for farmers involved in Australia’s dairy market.

On Monday Woolworths said it would cease selling the $1-a-litre milk from Tuesday, with two and three litre bottles rising by 10 per cent to $2.20 and $3.30 respectively.

Both Coles and Woolworths started selling $1-a-litre milk in 2011 as part of their price battle for market share.

“We believe the long term sustainability of our dairy industry, and the regional communities they help support, is incredibly important for Australia,” Woolworths chief executive Brad Banducci said.

Coles is yet to comment.

Zoe, a Bairnsdale dairy farmer, told Neil Mitchell “people have no idea how hard it is”.

“These people can’t feed their kids,” Zoe said.

“Once these farmers get to a point, they’re gone.

“No one will go back on them, the dairy industry will be gone.”

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Adam Jenkins, Camperdown dairy farmer told Tom Elliott this is just the first step forward, and hopefully supermarkets will follow with prices of other dairy products.