Warm summer makes British milk production lag

This is evident from figures from the British market agency AHDB. Milk production in the United Kingdom peaked early this year, with most milk collected in April. Moreover, volumes were well above those of a year earlier. However, after the peak in April, production has fallen significantly to well below the levels of the previous year.

High April peak and low August dip
During the April peak, approximately 37,6 million liters of milk per day were supplied to processing companies. That was approximately 0,5 million liters more than in April 2020. In total, the volume in April of 1.118.000 tons of milk was about 1,5% above last year's level.

By the beginning of August this had fallen to about 32,5 million liters per day. Production in August is therefore approximately 2,0% below 2020 levels. This means that approximately 0,65 million liters less milk is produced daily. The considerable lead over last year has therefore turned into a significant deficit in just a few months.

Production in the United Kingdom generally reaches its lowest point around August/September. This year production will dip a few weeks earlier. The AHDB indicates that the warm summer weather in June and July caused the grass to be of lower quality than in other years. Cows also experience heat stress, which has negatively affected production.

Increasing milk supply in autumn
It is expected that milk production will increase again in the coming months, as is traditional in the autumn. In the United Kingdom, many companies work according to the 'autumn calving' method, whereby the cows calve and return to production in the period from August to November.