Milk Prices in Santa Catarina See Increase but Projected Decline

The Conseleite Santa Catarina released the reference values for milk prices in April 2026, showing significant increases for various quality categories. However, projections for May indicate a downturn across all categories. The reference price for above-standard milk rose from R$ 2.9290 to R$ 3.2253 per liter between March and April, marking an increase of R$ 0.2963 per liter. For May, the projection decreases to R$ 3.0862, a reduction of R$ 0.1391 per liter compared to April.

Standard milk, a central reference for Conseleite SC, increased from R$ 2.3813 to R$ 2.6222 per liter from March to April, with a rise of R$ 0.2409 per liter. The projection for May predicts a drop to R$ 2.5091 per liter, a decrease of R$ 0.1131. Below-standard milk also saw an increase from R$ 2.2049 to R$ 2.4280 per liter in April, with a growth of R$ 0.2231. The estimate for May suggests a decline to R$ 2.3232 per liter, a reduction of R$ 0.1048.

The value differences highlight the importance of milk quality within the supply chain. Despite the projected decrease for May, above-standard milk maintains a significant premium over other categories. Conseleite SC also provided criteria for classifying standard milk, which includes fat content between 3.50% and 3.59%, protein between 3.11% and 3.15%, somatic cell count between 450,000 and 499,000 cells per milliliter, bacterial count between 251,000 and 300,000 CFU/ml, and individual delivery volume of up to 50 liters per day.

It was emphasized that milk of quality lower than the below-standard category is not priced by the entity. The reporting periods used were March 30 to April 26, 2026, for April's partial results, and April 27 to May 17, 2026, for May's partial results.