Dairy Market Report: U.S. Dairy Markets See Strong Exports and Consumption Growth

The U.S. average all-milk price stayed constant from June to July, even as futures markets and USDA estimates indicate rising prices in upcoming months.

Still, the cost of dairy feed, as calculated by the Dairy Margin Coverage feed cost formula, dropped by $0.66/cwt during the month, boosting the July margin to $12.33/cwt. That’s the fourth highest monthly margin since margin protection became the basic dairy safety net program in January 2015.

Total U.S. fluid milk consumption was higher than a year earlier during over half of the past 10 months, through July. Yogurt, butter and total cheese, especially other than American types, saw positive growth in use during May-July. July U.S. dairy exports were up substantially over their average levels during the first half of this year, at 17.4% of total U.S. milk solids production compared to an average of 16.4% during the first half. July marked the 13th consecutive month with lower milk production than a year earlier, during which period milk production averaged -0.8% below a year ago, while milk solids production averaged -0.2% below a year ago.

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