Inside Milk
Australia's milk supply is slightly down
The milk supply in Australia has slightly narrowed the gap compared to last year, according to new figures from Dairy Australia. In addition, the fat and protein contents are also slightly higher this season.
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Dairy farmers in Australia produced 857.065 tons of milk in September, which is 4,5% less than last year. In 2018, the milk supply in this month was still 897.634 tons. Although the 5-year average in September is slightly lower than last year (896.360 tons), this average is still about 4,3% above the 2019 level.
The fat and protein contents are higher this year. The fat content in September was 3,86%, which is 1,7% higher than last year. The protein content is 0,1% higher, bringing this content to 3,43%. The figures also show that milk production is 6% behind last year. The country has thus reduced the gap slightly this month, because last month the deficit was 6,9%. In the 2019/2020 season, 2,152 million tons of milk have been collected so far, compared to 2,288 million tons in the same period last year.
Regional differences
The largest regional decline in September is also attributable to Queensland. Milk production in this region is 14% lower than in the same month last year. Milk production therefore amounts to 28.462 tons. South Australia has also produced considerably less this year than last year. In September, milk production amounts to 40.455 tons, which is 10,5% less than last year in this month.
In contrast, slightly more milk was produced in Tasmania in September. The supply for that region amounts to 84.215 tons, which is 0,8% more than last year. In that year the milk supply was still 83.573 tons. This region is also still lagging behind when it comes to this season's total production. This is 3,1% behind last year.