Milk supply in Germany and France higher in May

In both Germany and France, milk supply seasonally peaks in May. The expectation is that the spring peak is behind us and the milk supply is now declining again. The publication of milk production in France and Germany always lags behind countries such as the Netherlands, which already published the July figures in the middle of this week.

Germany recovers after weak start
German milk production had a relatively weak start to the year. Although the volumes fluctuated around 5-year averages in the months January to April, the total volume of milk collected was always below the level of last year.

In May, the supply increased somewhat and the milk collection is at a comparable level to May 2020. A total of 2.876.510 tons of milk was supplied, a fraction more than last year's 2.871.140 tons. The fact that milk supply in Germany peaks somewhat more strongly in May may be due to the prolonged cool spring weather and therefore the postponed milk flush.

France is also peaking
In France, milk production also peaked in May, as is traditionally the case. In addition, the volumes were clearly above last year's level and the 5-year average. In total, French processors collected 2.243.010 tons of milk. That was 3,5% (76 tons) more than in May 2020. Compared to the 5-year average, the supply in May was about 0,9% higher.