Continued Support Needed for Dairy Farmers
IFA Dairy chair Stephen Arthur has called on milk processors to continue supporting their dairy farmers by maximising the price paid for April milk supplies.
Milk volumes continue to lag well behind 2023 levels, with the CSO confirming a drop of almost 6% in the first quarter of 2024 compared with the year before, while costs associated with the very difficult Spring weather have extended into May.
“We have reached or passed the peak of production now, with no lift in milk volumes on farm. This means reduced sales for dairy farmers, which is further compounded by the massive increase in overall cost of production this Spring. We acknowledge the support paid by some processors for March milk, but it needs to extend into April to alleviate some of the cashflow pressure among dairy farmers at this stage,” he said.
The outlook is stable, with the latest GlobalDairyTrade auction from New Zealand showing an overall index increase of 1.8%.
“Dairy markets are firming up. We need our processors to return every cent they can to dairy farmers to support them during this very difficult period,” he concluded.
