SIR Ben Gill, former president of the NFU, has been appointed non-executive chairman of Westbury Dairies.

He has more than 20 years' experience of lobbying UK and European politicians and is a passionate supporter of co-operatives and their moves into added value processing.

The chairmen of Dairy Farmers of Britain, First Milk and Milk Link welcomed the appointment.

"The future political influences on the markets for the products from Westbury, and thus on the factory's future, were fundamental in shaping our choice of chairman," said a joint statement.

"Sir Ben brings unbeatable political skills and experience to this role, which, combined with the commercially-orientated operations board at Westbury, will be vital in moving the business forward."

Sir Ben, who farms at Easingwold, was pleased to have been offered such a "challenging and exciting position".

"The reduction in intervention support will have a direct impact on the operation at Westbury and so the success of the business will depend upon ensuring that it is run efficiently and effectively while developing ways to add value to our products," said Sir Ben