About 10 people will lose their jobs and are being offered compensation above the terms of their contract.

Jersey Dairy says more and more people have switched to buying milk in shops rather than having it delivered.

The decision will affect 4,500 homes that receive subsidised milk for children under five and people aged over 70.

'Business opportunity'

Jersey Dairy managing director Kevin Keen, said that the ending of the service reflected practice in the UK and Guernsey.

He said: "If you look elsewhere, in Guernsey or the UK, the dairies do not deliver milk to the doorstep any more. Other people have stepped in to do that.

"It's possible that someone here will look at it as a business opportunity, but certainly not one that we have been able to manage."

One 89-year-old caller to BBC Radio Jersey said she would have problems getting milk once deliveries stopped.

She said: "I live alone and quite nearby, but I still can't get down to the market to get my milk."