The Danish Dairy Board
The majority of the Danish dairy companies are organised under the Danish Dairy Board, which, together with the Danish Agriculture and Food Council, manages the dairies’ interests and performs a large number of tasks on their behalf.
The Danish Dairy Board is the Danish dairy industry’s trade association.
The Danish Dairy Board is a knowledge-based organisation, and professional expertise is its most important resource for driving industry development, advising members and fulfilling its mission to create optimal growth potential for the Danish dairy industry.
The Danish Dairy Board manages the Danish School Milk Scheme and administers trademarks, foundations and other financial matters.
The Danish Dairy Board is part of the Danish Agriculture and Food Council, and together we collaborate on issues concerning dairy and the dairy industry. We are represented at offices in Aarhus, Copenhagen and Brussels.
Main tasks and areas of responsibility
- Safeguarding commercial and political interests in relation to the European Union and other international associations and organisations.
- Cooperation with national and international authorities and organisations.
- Direct negotiation and consultation with public authorities.
- Communication and image-building.
- Joint sales promotion for milk and dairy products, including school milk and nutrition.
- Oversight of product legislation, environment and quality standards.
- Coordination of dairy industry research and development.
- Administration of the Milk Levy Fund and the Dairy Rationalisation Fund.
- Preparation of industry statistics.
Organisation
The Danish Dairy Board has a board of directors representing its members, as well as several committees. The board is also represented internationally.
Board of Directors
The board consists of 6 members. It supervises the management and handles the strategic and guiding leadership of the Danish Dairy Board.
Members
The members of the Danish Dairy Board can be divided into two groups. The first group consists of co-operative and private dairies, whereas the second group includes trading companies involved with the export and import of dairy products. Our members vary in size, ranging from small farm dairies with a few employees to large companies with several hundred employees.
Co-operative and privately owned dairies
The first group of members consists of both co-operative dairies and privately owned dairies. Co-operative dairies receive raw milk directly from the milk farmers, whereas privately owned dairies have milk producers affiliated as contract suppliers or purchase raw milk from another company/dairy.
The milk is used for the production of dairy products, such as milk, butter, cheese, and cultured milk products like yoghurt. Additionally, some dairies also produce preserved milk, powder products, child nutrition, and ice cream, to name a few.
Trading companies
The second group consists of trading companies that do not deliver, produce or process dairy products but instead export Danish dairy products abroad and import foreign products into the Danish market.
International representation
Through the Danish Agriculture & Food Council, the Danish Dairy Board is a member of various national and international organisations connected to the dairy industry. These memberships enable us to promote the development of opportunities for the Danish dairy industry, especially for our members.
- IDF (International Dairy Federation). An international organisation for national dairy organisations. IDF serves its members by providing scientific knowledge relevant to the dairy sector, and by driving global initiatives for the industry.
- EDA (European Dairy Association). An association representing all European dairy industries in relation to EU institutions. Its members are the dairy industry's main organisations from each member country.
- ASSIFONTE. An association representing the European processed cheese sector and addressing the producers' interests and by establishing a common policy.
- Global Dairy Platform. Promotes the status of milk as a healthy and nutritious food in close cooperation with the IDF.
- SNE (Specialised Nutrition Europe). A European cooperation of food manufacturers with a particular focus on nutrition.