Ten years ago, out of the ashes of the Government's decision to break up first the Milk Marketing Board, and then Milk Marque, Milk Link was born as one of the three phoenix regional milk broking co-ops.

From the start, with the support of our members, we were determined to develop a business that would break the mould of past farmer-owned businesses. We recognised that we couldn't remain a relatively small milk broker, at the mercy of the commodity markets and power of the major plc dairy processors. Instead, we were determined to take control of our destinies by owning our own processing facilities to turn the milk we produced into value-added dairy products which we could sell directly to customers.

But back at the start many industry commentators doubted whether Milk Link would survive, let alone succeed. They pointed out that our milk fields were a long way from the major areas of consumption, that we had no defined governance or management structures, and that we had little working capital and no processing assets.

But, thanks to the loyalty and financial commitment of our members, the majority of whom farm in the South West, the skill and dedication of our staff and the willingness of our banks and customers to support us, not only have we survived but are, I strongly believe, succeeding.

Today, as we reach the still relatively young age of ten, we are no longer a regional milk broker but instead have become a national and highly-progressive, added-value dairy processing business. A business which has a turnover of over £500 million. A business which is owned by 1,500 dairy farmers, one which has substantial and well-invested British processing assets (including, in Devon, our award-winning Taw Valley cheese creamery at North Tawton and our newly-upgraded long-life and flavoured milk drinks dairy in Crediton), Scotland and Wales.

A business which has farmer members and direct suppliers located across the country, whose milk supply represents some 12 per cent of the total milk produced in Britain. A business which produces a comprehensive range of products which are now sold nationwide through our increasingly strong relationships with leading retailers.

But despite the progress we have made, I and the rest of the Milk Link board and senior management team are very conscious that we have a great deal more to do if we are to provide a long-term sustainable future for our dairy farmer members.

Indeed, this was highlighted over the last year when farm gate milk prices came under considerable pressure across the entire industry.

Milk Link eventually was regrettably forced to reduce its milk price, although this was in general by less and later than many of our competitors.

The board of course fully appreciates the impact that a reduction in the milk price has on our farmers and we recognise that as a farmer-owned co-operative, our first priority must be to increase the levels of return to our members, both in absolute terms and relative to the market.

With this in mind, it was pleasing that we were able to increase our member milk price by 0.5ppl from May 1, reflecting our success in maximising operational efficiencies, taking out cost from the business and improving our product and customer mix.

While this coming Friday, we shall also pay out £3.3m to our members in the form of a Processing Interest Payment.

This represents an 8.1 per cent return on our members' investment in the business and on average will be equivalent to 0.35ppl across the total volume of milk supplied in the year. This is the fourth year in a row that we have been able to make such a Processing Interest Payment to our members and to date we have paid out in excess of £13m to them.

The payment is a tangible reward for the investment and commitment of our members in building a major, added-value dairy products business. It also demonstrates the solid performance of the business over the last 12 months, despite the very difficult economic and trading conditions the dairy industry has faced.

Looking forward, our vision for Milk Link is to build it into a leading, broad-based, dairy products business owned by and run for dairy farmers.

Our aim is for a business which has the scale and agility to compete and win against the very best; is growing, pioneering and highly professional; has an expanding and supportive national membership and the ability to attract and retain the best people in the industry – and, above all, maximises the value of every litre of milk our members produce and every pound they invest in the business.

To achieve this we shall need to grow. We shall need to secure more milk, preferably produced by members, invest in the upgrading of our existing processing assets and, if necessary, in the acquisition of new ones, invest further in marketing and innovation, and at the same time work to further strengthen our capital base.