Inside Milk
Milk supply shrinks by 418 million liters
The Dutch milk supply shows a seasonal increase in December, but this does not alter the fact that the difference with 2017 is large.
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In December, Dutch milk processors collected 1.128.348 tons of milk, according to figures from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO.nl). Compared to the same month in 2017, this is a decrease of 6%.
Since September, the milk supply has also been within that order of magnitude behind last year, which means that the supply is structurally lower. Fat production in December amounted to 1,12 million tons, resulting in an average fat percentage of 4,54%. This means that the fat content in the milk is high.
Shrinkage in the dairy herd
In 2018, the milk supply amounted to 13,87 million tons, compared to 14,29 million tons in 2017. That is a decrease of approximately 418 million liters of milk, or a decrease of 2,93%. The reason for the decline is related to the introduction of the phosphate rights system. As a result, the dairy herd has been (significantly) thinned out on many farms and relatively many dairy farmers have stopped.
The declining milk supply also corresponds with sounds from the market. This means that raw milk is on the spot market limited availability, which means prices are again above €35 per 100 kilos. This is high compared to other years.
