Spain to build Europe’s largest dairy farm

It is said to be the biggest farm across Europe and will produce over half a million litres of milk per day and employ 300 staff. The new dairy is being built on 3,000 hectares of land but not everybody is positive about the venture.

Pushing ahead with construction is the Valle de Odieta co-operative who is spending anything between €50m and €95m on the project.

Being built in the small village of Noviercas, in the Zaragoza region, this mega-dairy has not gone down well with both farmers and farming organisations who say it will hurt local farmers in the area.

Local politician Dabid Anaut said the new operation will encompass practically the number of cows already in the region, which is currently 25,000, and will occupy a quarter of fertile land in the area.

However, it has been reported that Carmelo Gómez Sanz, the president of the farmers’ organisation Asaja Soria, has welcomed the investment, regardless of opinions in the sector.

He said: “We would like that instead of a dairy of 20,000 cows, there would be 20 of 1,000, but reality is telling us that that is impossible.

“We know that there is controversy, the sector may not like it whenever there is competition. But in Soria, there is nothing else, we have to reach everything that comes and this is an investment of €80m that will create jobs,” he added.