Ornua's December 2025 PPI Reflects Continued Decline in Milk Prices

The Ornua Purchase Price Index (PPI) recorded another monthly decrease for December 2025, with the indicative milk price dropping by almost 3c/L. The PPI for December was 129.4, a decrease from 138.0 in the previous month of November. The processing costs for member co-ops were estimated at 9.1c/L, which remained unchanged from the previous month.

The co-op clarified that these estimated processing costs are based on an average cost of processing the Ornua basket of products and are not representative of any individual member co-op processor. The methodology used has been updated since March 1, 2024, indexing variable elements to external indices updated quarterly.

After deducting estimated processing costs, the PPI suggests an indicative return of 37c/L, including 5.1% VAT for milk with 3.6% fat and 3.3% protein, down from 40.1c/L the previous month. Ornua attributed this decline to weak market returns for December. Additionally, the ‘Ornua Value Payment’ to member co-ops amounted to €2.4 million, representing 7.8% of gross purchases.

The latest PPI data coincides with a positive start to 2026 for the Global Dairy Trade (GDT) platform. The first GDT auction of the new year, on January 6, resulted in a 6.3% increase in the price index to 1,072, up from 1,008 at the end of last year. This marks a reversal after nine consecutive declines in the GDT index since August.