European butter rises €50 a tonne as whole milk powder falls €25
Butter gained €50 a tonne over the week, reaching approximately €3,700. Cheddar held at €3,800 a tonne, whereas whole milk powder lost €25 a tonne. Overall weekly price changes were limited, despite a gradual upward trend across several products.
Demand for skimmed milk powder remained strong, pushing prices towards earlier peaks. Its gains contrasted with the small decline in whole milk powder. The update described butter prices as beginning to recover following a prolonged period of falling prices.
Seasonal changes in milk yields were reducing European supplies. Producers reported lower availability even in countries with year-round calving. Average offers for spot milk reached roughly €0.47 a litre as prices on that market began rising again. These transactions involve milk purchased outside longer-term supply contracts, with prices responding to immediate availability. For processors buying additional milk for cheese, butter or powder, the increase raises raw-material procurement costs.
In the United States, September milk supplies were approximately 2% higher, according to the report. The update identified the potential for greater American dairy output to increase competition for European exporters, including Irish businesses, if additional production reaches international markets. It also linked the economics of US milk production to income from livestock sales alongside receipts from milk.
High prices for calves and cows sold for culling were providing substantial supplementary income to American dairy farms. Together, those sales reportedly represented nearly a fifth of total farm revenue. On some farms, they generated almost the entire profit margin, while milk receipts alone were struggling to meet input costs. Livestock income was therefore supporting farm finances during a period of milk-supply growth.
Historically tight US cattle inventories were helping to sustain high beef prices, according to the update. Higher animal values improved dairy-farm returns through sales of calves and cows removed from milking herds. The report identified weaker beef prices as a potential risk to that income: a substantial fall could reduce farm margins and slow the expansion of milk supplies.
