News Milk
German shortage on milk production costs falls
German dairy farmers are still many cents per kilo short of their milk money, despite the increased payout prices. In October last year it was just €8,70 per 100 kilos, or 19% of the costs, according to the German Büro für Agrarsoziologie und Landwirtschaf (BAL). This is mainly because the development of costs is also not standing still. The deficit is decreasing compared to previous years.
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The BAL always calculates the production costs of milk on behalf of the European Milk Board (EMB).
The situation is not good in the eyes of the BAL and the EMB, but the situation is certainly less bad than in the three previous years, as the data shows.
In 2017, 13% of the costs were not covered, which then amounted to €5,77 per 100 kilos. That was a relatively favorable moment, almost comparable to 2014. In the intervening years, a much larger part of the costs was not covered. In 2020, around 30% of costs were not covered in Germany, which amounted to an amount of €13,93 per 100 kilos.
The BAL currently has no comparative data for other EU member states. A report with comparative figures on the development of milk income and cost price in other EU member states, 2019 is the most recent year.
The Dutch Dairymen Board (DDB), which is a member of the EMB, always publishes monthly spot quotes of raw milk, powders and the like, but these are not based on payment prices of Dutch processors. Also, no current cost price calculation has been included.