Inside Milk
French milk production gives way to 5-year average
Milk production in France has been under some pressure in the last 2 years. Both last year and in 2018, dairy farmers supplied less milk to the factories than the 5-year average.
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The milk supply in France in December 2019 amounted to 2,085 million tons, which is 0,9% less than in the same month the year before. The French milk supply for the whole of 2019 amounts to more than 24.449.000 tons. This is 0,5% less than the 24.578.000 tons that dairy farmers supplied to French dairies in 2018. This is evident from the supply figures that France has submitted to the European Commission.
Peak over?
The French milk supply for 2019 is well below the 5-year average, which amounts to 24.707.190 tons. This means that the milk supply last year was more than 1% below this average. Milk production in 2018 was also already below this level. Whether this means that French dairy farming has reached its peak in milk production for the time being remains to be seen.
The past two summers were dry and warm, which meant that milk production suffered a small dip in July last year. However, the largest backlog has been built up in the winter months and spring last year. In the autumn, French milk production was almost in line with the 2-year average.