Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange consolidated after Tuesday’s drop. May was unchanged at $15.32, June was down $.07 at $15.35, July was $.04 lower at $15.85, and August was up $.03 at $16.29.

Cash cheese blocks were $.01 lower at $1.5425. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.5425. Barrels were down $.0075 at $1.42. A total of 10 loads were sold, one at $1.42 and nine at $1.425. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.42.

Butter was $.04 lower at $2.0975. One load was sold at $2.0975. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.09. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.115.

Nonfat dry milk was unchanged at $.8525. The last unfilled bid was on two loads at $.8525.

For the week ending April 22nd, the USDA says cash butter averaged $2.11 per pound, down $.024 on the week. 40 pound blocks of cheddar were pegged at $1.50, up $.005. 500 pound barrels averaged $1.47, a slight week to week decline. Dry whey came out at $.511, $.017 lower. Nonfat dry milk averaged $.847, $.015 higher.

HighGround Dairy says milk production in France for the week ending April 16th was down 1.8% on the year, but production in the United Kingdom for the week ending April 15th was up 2.4%.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were lower Tuesday, pressured by Monday’s bearish cold storage numbers, including a new March record for all cheese and a year to year increase in butter stocks. May was $.29 lower at $15.32, June was down $.43 at $15.42, July was $.33 lower at $15.89, and August was down $.33 at $16.26.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.5525. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.5525. Barrels were steady at $1.4275. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.4275.

Butter was $.0625 higher at $2.1375. 10 loads were sold, including four at $2.12 and one at $2.1375. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.10. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.1375.

Nonfat dry milk was up $.0075 at $.8525. The last unfilled bid was on two loads at $.8525.

California’s Department of Food and Agriculture says nonfat dry milk for the week ending April 14th averaged $.8527 per pound, down $.021 on the week. Sales of 17,894,945 pounds were up 11,446,687.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly weak on high production levels and spread trade. May was down $.03 at $15.61, June was $.02 lower at $15.85, July was down $.04 at $16.22, and August was $.01 lower at $16.59.

Cash cheese blocks were up $.0075 at $1.5525. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.5525. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.56. Barrels were unchanged at $1.4275.

Butter was down $.015 at $2.075. Three loads were sold, including two at $2.075 and one at $2.08. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.0725. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.07.

Nonfat dry milk was $.01 lower at $.845. One load was sold at $.845. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.86.

Cooperatives Working Together announced the acceptance of six requests for export assistance on 740,753 pounds of cheddar cheese. The products are headed to Asia and the Middle East with delivery from April through June of this year.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

New Zealand WMP futures have climbed 3% this week on the back of another GDT rise.

Last Tuesday’s Global Dairy Trade (GDT) event saw a third consecutive rise for milk product prices.

With the price index increasing by 3.1%, to an average price of $3,139, this is the first time three consecutively-positive events have been recorded since last December.

With GDT prices gathering momentum, futures prices have also followed trend. Whole milk powder (WMP) futures have climbed 3% in the last two weeks – even without three days of trading over the long Easter weekend.

At the GDT in New Zealand, the price index for whole milk power (WMP) increased by 3.5% with an average WMP price.

Source: Irish Farmers Journal

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly higher on spread trade and technical buying. April was down $.06 at $15.18, May was up $.15 at $15.33, June was $.18 higher at $15.54, and July was up $.08 at $15.94.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.475. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.4675. Barrels were down $.0175 at $1.3825. Six loads were sold, including one at $1.3825 and four at $1.3925. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.3725. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.39.

Butter was $.0025 lower at $2.0675. Two loads were sold, one at $2.0625 and one at $2.0725. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.065. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $2.08.

Nonfat dry milk was steady at $.8475. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.845. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $.855.

The USDA says the dairy cow slaughter during March was 271,100 head, 9.9% of the total kill, and the first quarter slaughter was 793.4 million head, 10.5% of the total.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Dairy product prices bumped higher again at the latest Global Dairy Trade (GDT) auction in the wake of cyclones Cook and Debbie.

The GDT price index gained 3.1 per cent from the previous auction two weeks ago, making it the third rise in a row.

The average winning price came to US$3139 ($4469) a tonne.

About 22,927 tonnes of product was sold, up from 22,642 at the previous auction.

Whole milk powder (WMP) prices, a key product for determining Fonterra’s farmgate milk price, climbed 3.5 per cent to US$2998 a tonne.

ASB rural economist Nathan Penny said this month’s severe weather had stymied a strong end to the New Zealand production season and might lead to a slow start to next season.

Thanks to Cyclone Cook following quickly in the wake of Cyclone Debbie, the country has been in storm mode for most of the past month.

“However, the saving grace for dairy is that it has come late in the season and the major dairying regions have escaped the worst of the production impacts,” Penny said.

“That said, there is a silver lining to the lost dairy production – we now see upside to our $6/kg milk price forecast for this season.

“Moreover, the recent auction results reaffirm our $6.75/kg forecast for next season as well,” he said.

Fonterra’s current milk price forecast still stands at $6/kg.

A large volume of instant WMP sold at a lower price than the regular grade product, AgriHQ dairy analyst Susan Kilsby said in a note.

“It was unusual to see regular grade WMP selling at a premium to the higher specification product but we have seen a lot of strength in the futures market recently and it is the regular grade product this market settles against,” said Kilsby.

Skim milk powder (SMP) jumped 7.1 per cent to US$2044 a tonne.

“The GDT prices indicate there are buyers that are prepared to pay a premium to source SMP produced in New Zealand,” Kilsby noted.

“Elsewhere in the world there is a glut of SMP but here we are successfully moving product and attaining good prices.”

Cheddar rallied 6 per cent to US$3462 a tonne, butter increased 2.9 per cent to US$4892 a tonne, while lactose added 1.2 per cent to US$935 a tonne.

Meanwhile, rennet casein dropped 3.8 per cent to US$6020 a tonne, while anhydrous milk fat slipped 0.5 per cent to US$5930 a tonne.

Buttermilk powder sold at US$1720 a tonne.

There were 130 winning bidders out of 173 participating at the 14-round auction.

The number of qualified bidders rose to 541, up from 537 at the previous auction.

Source: The Country

The latest Global Dairy Trade event has seen the price index for dairy products jump by 3.1%, following on from an increase of 1.6% at the previous auction.

Skimmed Milk Powder (SMP) recorded the largest increase, climbing by 7.1%. Whole Milk Powder (WMP) also saw its price index rise by 3.5%.

An increase of 2.9% was seen in the Butter price index, while the Cheddar price index rose by 6%.

Lasting for just over two hours; a total of 541 bidders were registered. There were 130 winning bidders across the 14 bidding rounds.

Key Results:

AMF index down 0.5% – average price US$5,930/MT
Butter index up 2.9% – average price US$4,892/MT
BMP index not available – average price US$1,720/MT
Ched index up 6.0% – average price US$3,462/MT
LAC index up 1.2% – average price US$935/MT
RenCas index down 3.8% – average price US$6,020/MT
SMP index up 7.1% – average price US$2,044/MT
WMP index up 3.5% – average price US$2,998/MT

Recovery In Powder Prices Welcomed

The recovery in powder prices at today’s auction was welcomed by the IFA’s National Dairy Committee Chairman Sean O’Leary.

The GDT price for butter and SMP would return a gross of 37.3c/L before processing costs of 5c/L were deducted. This would be the equivalent of a milk price of 32.3c/L plus VAT, or 34c/L including VAT, in Irish terms – according to the IFA.

The most recent available EU average market prices quoted by the Milk Market Observatory for April 9 show a stabilisation in EU SMP prices at around €100/t above intervention, O’Leary said.

A slight easing of WMP and cheddar prices was also recorded; butter and whey powder prices have lifted consistently for the last couple of weeks, he added.

“Assuming an Irish product mix, these prices would return a gross of 36c/L, or a milk price equivalent of 31c/L plus VAT (32.7c/L including VAT) after 5c/l processing costs are deducted,” he said.

Source: AgriLand

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly lower on spread trade and profit taking. April was unchanged at $15.24, May was down $.03 at $15.18, June was $.04 lower at $15.36, and July was down $.03 at $15.86.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.475. Barrels were $.02 lower at $1.40. One load was sold at $1.40. The last uncovered offer was for one load, also at $1.40.

Butter was $.0075 higher at $2.07. Seven loads were sold, including one at $2.07. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.0625. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.075.

Nonfat dry milk was down $.0025 at $.8475. One load was sold at $.8475. The last unfilled bid was for two loads at $.8375. The last uncovered offer was on two loads at $.86.

For the week ending April 15th, the USDA reports cash butter averaged $2.13 per pound, up $.003 on the week. 40 pound blocks of cheddar came out at $1.50, $.033 higher. 500 pound blocks averaged $1.47, up $.023. Dry whey was pegged at $.529, down $.006. Nonfat dry milk averaged $.832, $.006 higher.

The USDA says the base Class I milk price for May was $15.20 per hundredweight, down $.85 from April, with the skim price at $7.14, $.61 lower.

According to HighGround Dairy, milk production in Germany for the week ending April 2nd was down 2.8% on the year, while milk production for the United Kingdom during the week ending April 1st was up 0.6% and production in France for the week ending April 9th was 1% lower. February’s total for the 26 European Union member states assessed for milk production was 1.2% lower than a year ago. HighGround says that during January, the Netherlands culled a 15-year high amount of cattle for that month, as producers continue to adjust to a phosphate reduction scheme that offers an incentive of €300 per cow slaughtered.

The USDA says the 2016 dairy cattle slaughter totaled 2.543 million head, or 9.6% of all cattle slaughtered, compared to 2.236 million in 2015, or 10.3% of that year’s kill.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly higher on spread trade, short covering, and the higher Global Dairy Trade index. April was unchanged at $15.24, May was $.07 higher at $15.21, June was up $.11 at $15.40, and July was $.09 higher at $15.89.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.475. Barrels were $.0075 lower at $1.42. Four loads were sold, all at $1.42. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $1.42.

Butter was down $.0125 at $2.0625. Five loads were sold, including one at $2.0625. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.06. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.07.

Nonfat dry milk was steady at $.85. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.845. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.86.

The Global Dairy Trade auction index was up 3.1% at an average $3,139 per ton, the third event in a row with a gain. Skim milk powder was 7.1% higher and cheddar cheese was up 6.0%, while rennet casein was down 3.8% and anhydrous milk fat was 0.5% lower. Butter milk powder was untested. The next event is scheduled for May 2nd.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

There are greener pastures ahead for dairy farmers after a tough couple of years, Rabobank says.

But dairy prices were not expected to go much higher, meaning farmers should remain cautious.

A report from Rabobank said the country’s dairy farmers were set to “emerge from the woods” after two years of low commodity prices.

Rabobank dairy analyst Emma Higgins says dairy prices are likely to be steady into next season.

The food and agribusiness bank expected dairy farmers could look forward to a favourable upcoming season, even if changes to the farmgate milk price would be limited.

Fonterra last month confirmed its farmgate forecast price of $6 per kilogram of milksolids (kgMS).

Rabobank dairy analyst Emma Higgins said the $6 price was unlikely to rise for the rest of this season, because the price rally in the last half of last year had been offset by higher than expected production from New Zealand.

There was, however, greater market balance which would maintain prices next season.

“Milk output around the globe continues to remain low.

“While the speed of decline in milk production is slowing, it will take until the latter half of 2017 for volumes available for export to increase.

“On the demand side, we expect a significant uptick in Chinese dairy import volumes across 2017 and this will help to underpin whole milk powder markets.”

Higgins said this was expected to result in a farmgate milk price close to $6.25/kgMS, which would allow New Zealand dairy farmers to emerge from a tough couple of years.

Another profitable season, which a $6.25/kgMS price would provide for most, was crucial to boost confidence in the sector.

At the same time, feed and fertiliser prices were expected to remain comparatively low.

“Farmers do need to be conscious of the risk that the equation may play out less positively.

“Keeping cost control front of mind for the 2017/18 season will help both to maintain positive margins at improved milk prices, but also to maximise business resilience.”

Higgins said there were a number of risks to all of this as well, mostly relating to political uncertainty in Europe and increasing milk supply from the same region.

On the other hand, however, there was the possibility of a sharp increase in dairy exports to China.

“Chinese production has been struggling to keep pace with our low consumption growth forecast of one per cent and stock levels are now very low.

“We see import growth of 20 per cent year-on-year as a possibility for 2017, which would barely restore inventory levels.”

  Source: Stuff

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mixed on spread trade and general consolidation activity coming back from the long holiday weekend. April was up $.01 at $15.24, May was down $.06 at $15.14, June lost $.09 to $15.29, and July was $.06 lower at $15.80.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.475. Barrels were steady at $1.4275. Five loads were sold, all at $1.4275. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $1.4275.

Butter was $.0125 lower at $2.075. Three loads were sold, including one at $2.075. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.07. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.075.

Nonfat dry milk was $.005 higher at $.85. One load was sold at $.85. The last unfilled bid was on two loads at $.84.

The USDA says fluid milk production last week was steady to higher, along seasonal lines, and the high production levels have U.S. milk intakes “more than adequate for most processing needs,” while noting the impact of new Canadian import rules on U.S. producers. Cream supplies are readily available and mostly headed to butter churning. Butter production varies across the country, active in the East, but expected to slow down in the Central region with a few manufacturers reducing production levels. Inventories are stable and demand ranges quiet to solid, depending on the region. Cheese production is strong enough the USDA says several Midwestern cheesemakers have cancelled previous scheduled downtime. Midwestern cheese sales are steady to strong, slower in the Northeast and West, and there are a lot of uncertainties that demand can meet the supply. At the retail level, conventional dairy ads were up 48%, while organic ads were down 24%. The price spread between organic and conventional half gallons of milk is $1.39, in favor of organic.

The USDA and HighGround dairy say Cyclone Debbie negatively impacted the tail end of the milk season in Australia and New Zealand.

Cooperatives Working Together announced the acceptance of 15 requests of export assistance from member coops, covering 2.335 million pounds of Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses. The products are headed to Asia, the Middle East, and Oceania from April through July.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly higher on an oversold bounce. The USDA did lower the 2017 U.S. milk production estimate, but also lowered all milk price projections and most product outlooks, citing international competition. April was $.04 higher at $15.14, May was up $.21 at $15.23, June was $.14 higher at $15.32, and July was up $.06 at $15.88.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.46. Barrels held at $1.4275. 10 loads were sold, all at $1.4275. The last uncovered offer was for three loads at $1.43.

Butter was $.0125 higher at $2.09. One load was sold at $2.09, along with one at $2.0875. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.085. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.105.

Nonfat dry milk was up $.015 at $.825. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.825. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.81.

Source: Browmfield

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were down on follow through selling, the recent lower cash cheese trade, and demand uncertainties. April was $.18 lower at $15.14, May was down $.23 at $15.13, June was $.31 lower at $15.39, and July was down $.26 at $16.02.

Cash cheese blocks were $.02 lower at $1.48. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.48. Barrels were down $.0225 at $1.4375. There were a total of 10 loads sold, seven at $1.4575 and three at $1.45. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.435.

Butter was $.025 lower at $2.12. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.10. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.12.

Nonfat dry milk held at $.80. The last unfilled bid was on three loads at $.80. The last uncovered offer was for five loads at $.82.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were down on profit taking. April was $.20 lower at $15.36, May was down $.33 at $15.53, June was $.26 lower at $15.86, and July was down $.27 at $16.40.

Cash cheese blocks were $.01 lower at $1.52. There were two loads sold, one at $1.51 and one at $1.52. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.525. Barrels were down $.015 at $1.48. There were 13 loads sold, all at $1.48. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.485.

Butter was $.0225 higher at $2.15. There were five loads sold, including one at $2.15. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.1275. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.15.

Nonfat dry milk held at $.80. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.79. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.80.

The Global Dairy Trade index was up for the second event in a row, gaining 1.6% to close at $3,005 per ton. Rennet casein was up 6.9% and anhydrous milk fat was 2.5% higher, while butter milk powder dropped 12.2% and cheddar was 4.4% lower. The next even is scheduled for April 18th.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were higher, following through on the recent gains, extending the oversold and technical bounce. April was up $.25 at $15.56, May was $.11 higher at $15.86, June was up $.11 at $16.12, and July was $.08 higher at $16.67.

Cash cheese blocks were up $.01 at $1.53. There was one load sold at $1.53. The last unfilled bid was on one load, also at $1.53. Barrels were $.025 higher at $1.495. There were a total of 10 loads sold, including two at $1.495. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $1.50.

Butter was up $.02 at $2.1275. There was one load sold at $2.1275. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.14.

Nonfat dry milk held at $.80. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.80. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.815.

Cooperatives Working Together announced the acceptance of 12 requests for export assistance covering 2.01 million pounds of Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses. The products are headed to Asia, Central America, the Middle East, and Oceania with delivery slated for March through June.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange continued the recent oversold bounce. April was up $.14 at $15.33, May was $.26 higher at $15.89, June was up $.18 at $16.19, and July was $.18 higher at $16.73.

Cash cheese blocks were $.065 cents higher at $1.51. There were a total of seven loads sold, ranging from $1.45 to $1.50. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.51. Barrels were up $.08 at $1.45. There were 18 loads sold, including one at $1.45. The last uncovered offer was for one load $1.46.

Butter held at $2.10. There was one load sold at $2.10. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.095. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.12.

Nonfat dry milk was unchanged at $.8075. The last unfilled bid was on four loads at $.79. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.8175.

The USDA’s dairy price index for February 2017 was down 2.1% from January, but still 18% above February 2016. The all milk price was $18.50 per hundredweight, down $.40 on the month, but up $2.80 on the year. Adjusted for seasonal inflation, the all milk price was $19.30.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly modestly higher on follow through buying and spread activity. April was up $.03 at $15.19, May was $.04 higher at $15.63, June was up $.08 at $16.01, and July was $.05 higher at $16.55.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.445. Barrels were steady at $1.37. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.37.

Butter held at $2.10. There was one load sold at $2.10. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.09. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.10.

Nonfat dry milk was $.0075 lower at $.8075. There was one load sold at $.8075. The last unfilled bid was on two loads at $.79. The last uncovered offer was for five loads at $.83.

The USDA says cash butter for the week ending March 25th averaged $2.17 per pound, down $.026 on the week. 40 pound blocks of cheddar were pegged at $1.48, $.059 lower. 500 pound barrels averaged $1.47, down $.052. Dry whey was reported at $.531, up $.005. Nonfat dry milk averaged $.838, $.014 lower.

California’s Department of Food and Agriculture reports nonfat dry milk for the week ending March 24th averaged $.8308 per pound, down $.0117 on the week. Sales of 21,067,814 pounds were up 2,320,292.

HighGround Dairy says that for the week ending March 18th, milk production in the United Kingdom was up 1.3% on the year and for the week ending March 19th, milk production in France was 0.1% lower. Milk production in New Zealand for February was 3.3% higher than a year ago.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange followed through and built on Monday’s late gains. April was up $.16 at $15.16, May was $.30 higher at $15.59, June was up $.21 at $15.93, and July was $.18 higher at $16.50.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.445. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.445. Barrels held at $1.37. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.38.

Butter was steady at $2.10. There was one load sold at $2.10. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.11.

Nonfat dry milk was $.005 lower at $.815. There was one load sold at $.8125. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.815. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.83.

Cooperatives Working Together announced the acceptance of 21 requests for export assistance from member coops, covering 2.581 million pounds of Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses and 52,360 pounds of butter to Asia and Oceania. Delivery is contracted for March through June.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly lower, resuming the recent trend. March was up $.06 at $15.80, April was down $.36 at $15.05, May was $.32 lower at $15.41, and June was down $.20 at $15.80.

Cash cheese blocks were $.01 lower at $1.44. There were six loads sold, five at $1.44 and one at $1.4375. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.44. Barrels were unchanged at $1.41. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.41.

Butter was down $.02 at $2.10. There was one load sold at $2.10.

Nonfat dry milk was up $.0225 at $.845. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.845. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.85.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly modestly higher on spread trade and oversold signals. April was down $.05 at $15.41, May held at $15.73, June was down $.01 at $16.00, and July was up $.02 at $16.52. August through December 2017 contracts were also firm.

Cash cheese blocks were $.02 higher at $1.45. There were two loads sold, one at $1.45 and one at $1.44. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.43. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.46. Barrels were up $.02 at $1.41. There were four loads sold, one at $1.41 and three at $1.43. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.41.

Butter held at $2.12. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.11. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.135.

Nonfat dry milk was $.0175 higher at $.8225. There were three loads sold, one at $.82, one at $.81, and one at $.8175. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.8225. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.8375.

The USDA has set the base Class I milk price for April 2017 at $16.05 per hundredweight, down $.85 from March. The skim price is $7.75, $.90 lower.

The USDA says cash butter for the week ending March 18th averaged $2.20 per pound, up $.007 on the week. 40 pound blocks of cheddar came out at $1.54, down $.051. 500 Pound barrels averaged $1.53, $.067 lower. Dry whey was pegged at $.526, $.006 higher. Nonfat dry milk averaged $.852, up $.003.

California’s Department of Food and Agriculture says nonfat dry milk for the week ending March 17th averaged $.8425, up $.0088 on the week. Sales of 18,747,522 pounds were 2,324,314 higher.

According to HighGround Dairy, milk production in the United Kingdom during the week ending March 11th was 1.9% below last year’s levels and French milk production for the week ending March 12th was 1.3% lower. German milk production for the week ending March 5th declined 2.8%.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were supported by an oversold bounce and the USDA’s lower than a year ago milk production numbers for February. March was up $.04 at $15.76, April was $.36 higher at $15.46, May was up $.53 at $15.73, and June was $.40 higher at $16.01.

Cash cheese blocks were $.0275 higher at $1.43. There were eight loads sold, including four at $1.43. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.43. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.435. Barrels were up $.03 at $1.39. There were a total of 17 loads sold, including one at $1.39, five at $1.36, and six at $1.365. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.385. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $1.40.

Butter was $.01 lower at $2.12. There was one load sold at $2.12. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.11.

Nonfat dry milk was unchanged at $.805. The last unfilled bid was on three loads at $.805. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.8175.

The Global Dairy Trade index was up 1.7% at $3,101 per ton, bouncing back slightly after two consecutive lower events. Butter was up 4.9% and rennet casein was 3.6% higher, while skim milk powder dropped 10.1% and lactose was 2.7% lower. The next even is scheduled for April 4th.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Prices on the GlobalDairyTrade platform may drop for a third straight auction tonight as supply outstrips demand.

Futures trading on the NZX this morning indicated whole milk powder prices will slip 3%, skim milk powder will drop 6% and milkfat products such as butter and anhydrous milk fat will decline between 2 and 3%, according to AgriHQ senior dairy analyst Susan Kilsby.

Fonterra Cooperative Group, the world’s largest dairy exporter, earlier this month announced it would lift the volume of whole milk powder and skim milk powder offered in coming auctions on the GDT platform by about 25,000 tonnes as more favourable weather meant it collected more milk than expected from its farmer suppliers.

“We did see some gain in whole milk powder prices last week but since Friday the future market has eased back,” Ms Kilsby said. “There is nearly 10% more whole milk powder available at this auction than the previous event so it will be a challenge for the market to absorb this extra volume without some slippage in price.”

Dairy products are New Zealand’s largest commodity export, worth $11.25 billion in the year ended Jan. 31, according to the latest trade data from Statistics New Zealand.

Source: NBR

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were pressured by follow through selling and demand uncertainties. March was down $.01 at $15.72, April was $.18 lower at $15.10, May was down $.20 at $15.20, and June was $.23 lower at $15.61.

Cash cheese blocks were up $.0025 at $1.4025. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.4025. Barrels were down a $.005 at $1.36. There was one load sold at $1.36. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.37.

Butter held at $2.13. There was one load sold at $2.13, along with one sold at $2.125. The last uncovered offer was for three loads at $2.15.

Nonfat dry milk was unchanged at $.805. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.7975. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.82.

Cooperatives Working Together announced the acceptance of 22 requests for export assistance from member coops, covering 3.523 million pounds of cheddar, Gouda, and Monterey jack cheeses for Asia and Oceania. Delivery is slated for March through June.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Next year’s dairy payout should stay around $6 per kilogram of milksolids, ASB’s chief economist told farmers at the Central Districts Field Days.

Nathan Penny, addressing 30 people  at a seminar, said food prices generally were increasing and international demand for all food including dairy products was already occurring.  He said the milk payout was part of that.

“But yes the economy is more resilient.  Dairy struggled for several years.  But what surprised us was the rest of farming, horticulture, beef and forestry filled the gap.  What we saw in 2015 was that exports still grew even though dairy was down.”

Penny said the milk price internationally had lifted structurally and as a result he expected next year’s payout to be solid. But he said production and pricing would be dependent on the weather.

“The New Zealand economy in general is pretty good.  The Kiwi dollar won’t fall against the American dollar much at all.”

But he said New Zealand could cop fallout if US President Donald Trump started a trade war with China.

“Trump on his first day in office dumped the TPP.  He is unpredictable.”

Penny said  a trade war against China was a bigger risk to New Zealand than tariffs on trade to the US.

He said in terms of doing business with the US, agriculture was not talked about and he didn’t expect further trade barriers this year.

“US agriculture will be less competitive as their costs go up.  But China is a major market for New Zealand and we don’t want to see a trade war between the two. It will impact on us.”

Source: Stuff

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly lower, with the most active contracts down on follow through technical selling and demand uncertainties. March was up $.02 at $15.68, April was $.28 lower at $14.96, May was down $.25 at $15.11, and June was $.23 lower at $15.60.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.36. There were three loads sold, two at $1.36 and one at $1.37. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.36. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.38. Barrels were $.025 lower at $1.35. There were a total of 11 loads sold, including three at $1.35. The last unfilled was on two loads at $1.34. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.37.

Butter was down $.04 at $2.11. There were 22 loads sold, including one at $2.11 and 11 at $2.12. The last unfilled bid was on five loads at $2.10. The last uncovered offer was for five loads at $2.11.

Nonfat dry milk was steady at $.795. There were five loads sold, including one at $.795 and three at $.79. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.79. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.80.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange resumed the recent trend, taking back Tuesday’s gains, and then some, in most months. March was $.06 lower at $15.66, April was down $.27 at $15.24, May was $.39 lower at $15.36, and June was down $.32 at $15.83.

Cash cheese blocks were down $.01 at $1.36. There were four loads sold, including two at $1.36. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.37. Barrels were $.025 lower at $1.375. There were two loads sold, one at $1.375 and one at $1.395. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.40.

Butter was down $.03 at $2.15. There was one load sold at $2.15.

Nonfat dry milk was $.01 lower at $.795. There were a total of six loads sold, including three at $.79. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.795. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.80.

The USDA reports cash butter for the week ending March 11th averaged $2.19 per pound, up $.034 on the week. 40 pound blocks of cheddar came out at $1.59, down $.043. 500 pound barrels averaged $1.59, $.062 lower. Dry whey was pegged at $.52, $.008 higher. Nonfat dry milk averaged $.849, a drop of $.078.

California’s Department of Food and Agriculture says nonfat dry milk for the week ending March 10th averaged $.8337 per pound, down $.0921 on the week. Sales were 16,423,208 pounds, a jump of 10,249,411 from the week before.

According to HighGround Dairy, milk production in the United Kingdom, for the week ending March 4th, was down 0.7% on the year, and milk production in France, for the week ending March 5th, was 1.6% lower than last year.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly firm on spread trade and oversold signals, with many months bouncing back slightly from some big recent losses. It may just be “Turnaround Tuesday” activity, however. March was up $.04 at $15.72, April was unchanged at $15.51, May was $.11 higher at $15.75, and July was up $.08 at $16.15.

Cash cheese blocks were up $.0025 at $1.37. There were four load sold, two at $1.37. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.38. Barrels were unchanged at $1.40. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.41.

Butter was $.0175 higher at $2.18. There was one load sold at $2.18 and one at $2.17.

Nonfat dry milk was down $.0025 at $.805. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.79. The last uncovered offer was on two loads at $.805.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III Milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were down on follow through selling, along with expectations for high milk production levels and slow export demand. March was $.06 lower at $15.68, April was down $.10 at $15.51, May was $.12 lower at $15.64, and June was down $.03 at $16.07.

Cash cheese blocks were $.0175 lower at $1.3675. There were four loads sold, including one at $1.3675. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.37. Barrels held at one forty. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.40.

Butter was unchanged at $2.1625.

Nonfat dry milk was down $.0025 at $.8075. There were two loads sold, including one at $.8075. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.805. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $.81.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Overall the Global Dairy Trade (GDT) price index fell by 6.3% at last week’s trading event in New Zealand.

Last Tuesday’s GDT event saw another overall decline for milk product prices. This was primarily driven by another poor showing for powders. The price of whole milk powder (WMP) declined almost 12.4%, to $2,782/t.

Skimmed milk powder (SMP) – the second largest commodity traded – also took a large tumble as prices fell by 15.5%, to $2,118/t.

This second consecutive slip in prices is largely down to market instability, where an increase in EU volumes and a decrease in New Zealand volumes has affected trading.

On a positive note for Irish farmers, butter and butter milk powder were the only two commodities…

Source: Irish Farmers Journal

Source: Otago Daily Times

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly higher on spread trade and oversold signals, ahead of the USDA’s monthly supply and demand report. March was down $.07 at $15.88, April was up $.14 at $16.13, May was $.13 higher at $16.25, and June was up $.16 at $16.45.

Cash cheese blocks were $.02 lower at $1.44. There were three loads sold, including one at $1.44. The last unfilled bid was on one load, also at $1.44. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.45. Barrels were $.02 higher at $1.45. There were a total of seven loads sold, including one at $1.45 and two at $1.44. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.42. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.46.

Butter was up $.03 at $2.1975. There was one load sold at $2.1975. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.20.

Nonfat dry milk was $.01 higher at $.81. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.81. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.83.

The USDA reports cash butter for the week ending March 4th averaged $2.16 per pound, up $.018 on the week. 40 pound blocks of cheddar came out at $1.64, down $.036. 500 pound barrels averaged $1.66, $.024 lower. Dry whey was pegged at $.513, $.008 higher. Nonfat dry milk averaged $.927, $.029 lower.

California’s Department of Food and Agriculture says nonfat dry milk for the week ending March 3rd averaged $.9258 per pound, down $.0361 from the previous week. Sales were 6,173,797 pounds, up 1,101,268.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

The Global Dairy Trade (GDT) index dropped 6.3% at last night’s auction, with several grades of milk powder failing to move from their opening prices. 

The result confirms that Fonterra’s decision to hold their milk price forecast for the current season at $6/kg milksolids (MS) was the right one.

Movements in commodity prices in the later part of the season have a smaller impact on the price farmers are paid for their milk because of the lower volume of product being traded at this time of the year.

Normally at this time of the season the volume of product being offered on GDT starts to fall away but improved milk intakes in recent months mean Fonterra has more product available to sell than previously anticipated. 

AgriHQ dairy analyst Susan Kilsby said farmers will be disappointed with last nights result.

“To see prices falling again before the market has fully recovered will be a disappointment to farmers. While one poor result doesn’t have a huge impact on the milk price it will be difficult for prices to recover quickly while there is surplus product available.”

“Last night’s result shows just how tightly balanced the market is – there just isn’t the depth of demand in the market to absorb any extra product at the moment.”

The NZX Dairy Derivatives market had anticipated a weak GDT result but the prices attained overnight were even lower than expected. Going into the auction futures market participants had priced in a 8% fall in WMP and a 12% fall in SMP for product supplied by Fonterra. However the results were even weaker than this.

Regular grade WMP for shipping in May traded at US$2,695/t, 14.7% below the price achieved for this grade of product at the previous event.

Medium heat SMP supplied by Fonterra with a May shipping date also failed to lift from its opening price meaning buyers were able to secure this product at US$2,195/t. While that is 15.4% less than what they would have paid a fortnight ago it is still more than the current market price for equivalent product in the European and United States markets.

Milkfat products did a lot better. Demand for butter and anhydrous milkfat (AMF) has been very strong throughout the season driven by dietary trends towards natural products and away from synthetic products such as margarine.

Regular grade AMF was priced at US$5515/t just 0.8% less than at the previous auction, while butter recorded a 2.3% lift in price with unsalted product with a May shipping date making US$4,700/t. 

Source: Farmers Weekly

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly higher, with the most active months seeing a bounce after the recent mostly sharply lower trend. March was up $.06 at $15.95, April was $.16 higher at $15.99, May was up $.14 at $16.12, and June was $.13 higher at $16.29.

Cash cheese blocks were $.02 lower at $1.46. There was one load sold at $1.46. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.47. Barrels were down $.0075 at $1.43. There were a total of 16 loads sold, including 13 at $1.43. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $1.43. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.435.

Butter was $.02 higher at $2.1675. There was one load sold at $2.18. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.16. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.1675.

Nonfat dry milk was $.005 lower at $.80. There were eight loads sold, with three at $.80, four at $.7975, and one at $.8025. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.7925. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.95.

The Global Dairy Trade auction index was down 6.3% at $3,512 per ton, lower for the second consecutive event. Decliners led advancers by a pretty wide margin, including a 15.5% drop in skim milk powder and 12.4% loss in whole milk powder. Butter milk powder was up 8.4% and butter was 1.2% higher. The next event is scheduled for March 21st.

Cooperatives Working Together announced the acceptance of 23 bids for export assistance from member coops. That covers 4.616 million pounds of Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses headed to Asia, Central America, North Africa, and Oceania. Delivery is scheduled for March through June of this year.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

The big declines in Australian milk production should turn the corner in the next financial year courtesy of improving farmgate milk prices, the trend towards low-cost grain and concentrate feeds and yield improvements.

Fodder to fuel milk price lifts for the next three seasons will come from the growing taste for dairy in Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, where both populations and incomes are on the rise.

Reduced turn-off in key dairy countries including New Zealand and the European Union and the re-opening of the Russian market will also contribute upward pressure on world dairy prices.

This is the outlook from Australia’s senior economists, whose dairy forecasts paint a much-welcome dab of optimism for the milk production game in Australia at long last.

In this financial year, world prices for cheese are forecast to lift by 14 per cent, for skim milk powder by 16pc, butter by 31pc and whole milk powder 37pc.

That trend will continue out to 2019-20 before global production catches up to cause a leveling effect.

The big mover and shaker is the Russian Federation, expected to resume importing dairy products from major exporters next year.

Before it implemented the trade embargo in 2014, Russia was the largest importer of cheese and butter.

ABARES says imports will not return immediately to those levels but Russia will certainly contribute to growing demand for global dairy.

Improvements in export returns should flow through to a lift in farmgate prices for Australian producers this financial year of around 2pc.

The good news is that is expected to continue to a 7pc rise in 2017-18, assuming a slight depreciation in the Australian dollar and the forecast higher world prices.

Reflecting those rises, our milk production, which has been in decline and will finish this season 7pc down, should start to lift.

ABARES experts have it at a 2pc recovery in 2017-18 to 9 billion litres and over the medium term rising consistently to 9.6b litres.
Source: NorthQueensland

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were down on the recent slide in the cheese market, resuming the recent trend that has pushed the milk market to four month lows. March was down $.05 at $15.89, April was $.09 lower at $15.83, May was down $.06 at $15.98, and June was $.17 lower at $16.16.

Cash cheese blocks were unchanged at $1.48. Barrels held at $1.4375.

Butter was down $.015 at $2.1475. There were four loads sold, including one at $2.1475. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.14. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $2.1625.

Nonfat dry milk was steady at $.805. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.8025. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $.8125.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

The USDA says January cheese production was 1.040 billion pounds, up 3.7% on the year. That’s down from December, but still the fourth month in a row with a total of more than a billion pounds as producers shrug off slow export demand and record supplies, focusing on relatively consistent domestic demand. Production of Italian type cheese jumped 3.8% to 451.890 million pounds while American cheese production was 3% higher at 412.887 million pounds. Butter production was 177.761 million pounds, up 1.2% from a year ago as churners prepare for spring holidays.

Nonfat dry milk for human consumption came out at 155.039 million pounds, up 13.1% on the year, and skim milk powders totaled 50.540 million, down 1.4%. All dry whey production was pegged at 82.220 million pounds, 1.3% lower, with lactose for human and animal consumption at 92.178 million pounds, 9% higher, and whey protein concentrate at 40.048 million pounds, up 2.6%.

Hard, regular ice cream was reported at 56.628 million gallons, a decline of 0.8%, and lowfat totaled 29.494 million gallons, an increase of 14.7%. Hard sherbet production in January was 3.135 million gallons, a gain of 27.4%, and frozen yogurt totaled 4.236 million gallons, 2.7% higher.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Class III milk futures at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange were mostly modestly higher on spread trade and technical buying as contracts have lost a lot of ground recently. March was down $.01 at $16.03, April was up $.07 at $15.96, May was $.14 higher at $16.04, and June was up $.09 at $16.25.

Cash cheese blocks were $.02 lower at $1.47. There was one load sold at $1.47. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $1.48. Barrels held at $1.465.

Butter was down $.07 at $2.1625. There were a total of 14 loads sold, including four at $2.1625 and eight at $2.16. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $2.1525. The last uncovered offer was for two loads at $2.1625.

Nonfat dry milk was up $.005 at $.7975. There were two loads sold, one at $.7975 and one at $.79. The last unfilled bid was on one load at $.795. The last uncovered offer was for one load at $.7975.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

The Class III price in August was $1.67 higher than in July, while the Class IV price was down $0.19. This separation of the Class III and Class IV markets has persisted for several weeks, as cheese markets are doing better than butter-powder markets. Reflecting this, the butter and powder prices are down by 2.4% and 3.8% respectively, while cheese and whey prices are 13% and 16% higher. Cheese prices are apparently reflecting strong domestic demand, although the export markets are still limited by the strong dollar and substantial worldwide inventories. Butter stocks are well above last year, and with the strong dollar and accumulating inventories in Europe, we may see increased butter imports once again in the autumn. Exporting butter in this market will be a challenge. California’s milk production continues to lag behind below a year ago, with the continuing drought and extreme heat. U.S. milk production in July was up by 1.4% over last July. Since last month the Euro has recovered 1.5% relative to the greenback while the Australian dollar is up by 0.9% and the New Zealand dollar is up by 4.2%. In total these changes in currency values improve U.S. competitiveness in export markets. Nevertheless dairy exports are far below 2014 levels and somewhat below 2015, although improving despite the strong dollar. Cheese futures prices have fallen by 1.7% in the last month for the 2016 contracts. Butter futures have fallen in recent weeks about 15¢/lb., giving back increases from a month ago. Nevertheless world inventories are high and the dollar is still expensive relative to the other exporters. China should be importing more, given their milk production, but this increase is slow to arrive. Table 1 shows recent dairy class prices, plus the futures prices for the remainder of 2016 and first half of 2017. Class III, and to a lesser extent Class IV prices, are expected to be higher over the remainder of 2016, and the futures prices are about the same this fall as for the first half of 2017. My estimates for the Pennsylvania All Milk Price for the rest of 2016 show it averaging $3.00 per cwt. more than for January-July. In much of Pennsylvania and especially upstate New York, the latest Drought Monitor shows the drought is continuing. Although it is hard to generalize from individual farm results, early harvest results in much of Pennsylvania are disappointing for hay and corn silage. This of course will hurt net dairy income. Besides the Northeast and the continuing extreme drought in California, the nation’s crop weather is generally okay. The long-term issues depressing the dairy economy are still the strong dollar, the Russian embargo on EU dairy imports, and China’s economy. Overall the outlook for milk prices for the rest of 2016 is much better than the first half, as it is for the first half of 2017. Corn and Soybean Markets Corn and soybean meal prices are down 2.5% and 6.6% in the past month, and soybean prices are down 6.6% as well. The U.S. corn and soybean crops will be records as Corn Belt weather has been almost ideal. Exports of corn and beans are lagging estimates, undoubtedly reflecting the strong dollar. Income over Feed Costs (IOFC) Penn State’s measure of income over feed costs rose by 24% in August from its July value, as much higher milk prices combined with somewhat lower feed prices. Figure 1 shows how these values compare to recent years. August’s income over feed cost is the highest since November 2014. Income over feed cost reflects daily gross milk income less feed costs for an average cow producing 65 pounds of milk per day. Table 2 shows the monthly data for the past 18 months. The allocation of the revenue per hundred pounds of milk (milk margin) is shown in Table 3. The milk margin is the estimated amount of the Pennsylvania all milk price that remains after the feed costs per hundredweight of milk production are paid. Like income over feed cost, this measure shows that the August PA milk margin was 24% higher than in July. For both measures the estimated price may be overly optimistic, but  in any case the profitability of dairy production in Pennsylvania is improving.

If the Pennsylvania drought hits farmers hard, which it will for some, then the feed cost using market prices will understate the impact as farmers spent money to produce feed and then must spend more money to replace crops lost to drought. Milk Production The latest U.S. milk production report showed July milk production up 1.4% from a year earlier on a 30-day month basis (Figure 2). Although not a large increase, this milk production increase is problematic in the current dairy environment, since the export market is tight, given the strong dollar, and there is plenty of milk available from other exporters with weaker currencies. As is seen in Figure 3, cow numbers continue to grow very slowly and increased by only 0.19% over last year. Although this increase is very small, more milk production nationally will restric reaching higher milk prices.

Source: Penn State

Dairy co-operatives are hoping for a more sedate milk market in 2017, after the wild volatility of the last few years, with balanced supply and demand keeping prices near their current levels.

FrieslandCampina and Arla, two of the world’s largest dairy co-operatives respectively, both see a balanced market for the year to come, with production stabilising after a recent slowdown.

“We do not currently foresee significant changes in global consumption trends or big shifts in global trade patterns during 2017,” said the Danish co-operative Arla.

This outlook tallies with one from the UN, which sees dairy markets adequately supplied, despite rising prices.

2016 market rally

Global dairy prices rose sharply last year, with prices on the GlobalDairyTrade index up some 55% between July and December.

And the UN’s FAO dairy price index for February was seen at its highest level since August 2014, up 37% year-on-year.

But the FAO on Thursday said the market was not currently tight, given that “supplies to the international market continue to be adequate considering the level of demand”.

Tight supply seen driving price increase

“Looking back, the price rally during the second half of 2016 was driven primarily by a European decline in milk supply that led to an increasing raw material shortage,” Arla said.

The co-operative noted that the rally had come despite no big pick-up in demand.

“Unlike the earlier price cycles of 2007 to 2008 and 2012 to 2013, when global demand was the key driver for price increases, the price mechanisms of 2016 were supply-driven.”

Arla saw prices now dependent on “how supply will respond to the increasing market milk prices, and how fast this supply recovery will take place”.

Production edges up

FrieslandCampina on Thursday reported rising profits, thanks to an increase in higher margin product sales, despite a fall in revenues thanks to lower dairy prices and negative currency effects.

2016 profit increased by 5.5% to E362m, while revenue fell by 1.9%, to E11.0bn.

The Dutch co-operative forecast global milk production to rise somewhat in 2017, with a “marginal increase in milk production” expected within the European Union”.

But both co-operatives warned of the potential effect to European Union phosphate reduction measures, which are being bought into law in the Netherlands.

Major regulatory factors such as EU phosphate regulation and other environmental regulations are likely to negatively impact the development of the supply and demand balance in 2017,” said Arla.

Flat market forecast

FrieslandCampina struck a downbeat tone on demand prospects.

European dairy demand meanwhile, is likely to “remain stable or stay on a slightly declining trend,” the co-op said.

“In Africa, the Middle East and South America, a further decline in demand is foreseen.”

But in Asia, and particularly in China, “a slight increase in the demand for dairy products is expected”.

“As a consequence of the above-mentioned trends, it is expected that the prices for basic dairy products will continue to fluctuate around the year-end 2016/beginning of 2017 level,” FrieslandCampina said.

Source: Agrimoney

USDA’s Ag Marketing Service reports the Class III price for February was $16.88 per hundredweight, which is 11-cents more than January and $3.08 higher than last February. The Class IV price dropped six cents in February to $15.59, but it’s still $2.11 higher than February of 2016. Class II gained sixteen cents in February to $16.52.

In January, the U.S. milk price was 18.90 per hundredweight, but producers in New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wisconsin all had prices higher than the national average. Texas dairy producers averaged $20.20 per hundredweight in January.

Wisconsin producers averaged $19.30 in January. Minnesota’s average was $19.10. Michigan’s price was $18.10 in January.

Source: Brownfield