Milk News, 09.01.2025

In December, milk deliveries increased as is typical at this time of year. According to the Central Milk Market Reporting (ZMB), around 1.3% more milk was delivered to dairies in the last week of December than in the previous week, but still 1.1% below the previous year's level. Since the beginning of 2024, a total of 0.5% less milk has been delivered than in the same period last year. Meanwhile, prices on the spot market have come under pressure. According to the ife Institute, the average price in Germany fell to 42.0 cents/kg in Kiel in the first week of the year, which corresponds to a drop of 5.6 cents compared to mid-December.

On the butter market, trade in packaged butter was brisk over and between the holidays until the New Year. As expected, demand slowed at the beginning of the year, although sales were even higher than many market participants had expected. Producers were satisfied with the sales figures to date and expect sales to remain good in the coming weeks. Prices for molded butter remained stable at the turn of the year. On the exchange in Kempten, the price for packaged butter this week was between EUR 8.50 and EUR 8.80/kg - unchanged from the previous year. Retail prices also remained constant. Private consumers had to pay EUR 2.39 for a 250 gram packet. Organic butter was sold at a price of EUR 3.49.

The trend was similar for sliced cheese. Demand remained lively after the Christmas period, particularly in the food retail sector. The industry and bulk consumers also reported stable order volumes. There were also some deliveries to southern Europe and third countries, although the volumes varied considerably. Due to the public holidays and the resulting lack of days for deliveries, stocks in the maturing warehouses have recovered somewhat. Nevertheless, they are still at a low level and products are often still leaving the warehouses young. Production was limited by the short supply of raw materials. In terms of prices, there were no changes compared to the end of 2024. The first quotation in 2025 on 8 January resulted in prices of EUR 4.65 to 4.75/kg for block goods and EUR 4.90 to 5.10/kg for bread goods.

The market for food-grade skimmed milk powder started the year quietly, similar to the Christmas period. Due to the vacation mode of many market participants, there was little activity. Although there were inquiries for deliveries at short notice, these were at a low level. Due to the low delivery volumes, producers were under little pressure to sell and warehouses often still had sufficient capacity if goods had to be stored. Prices remained stable or fell slightly, with no clear trend. EU goods were competitive on the global market, but met with limited demand. The market for skimmed milk powder in animal feed quality was also quiet after the holidays. There were few inquiries and hardly any new contracts. Prices remained unchanged at EUR 2,340 to 2,390 per tonne.