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There could be a shortage of butter and cream before Christmas in the UK, Arla chief executive Peder Tuborgh has said.
In comments to the BBC, the Arla boss said that insufficient milk is being supplied by farmers to make butter and that the milk shortage had come about because producers “put the brakes on” in 2016.
This, he said, was in the wake of previous overproduction of milk and consequently lower prices.
Impact
Tuborgh said consumers would feel the price impact across Europe in the coming months, suggesting that price rises would differ between European nations.
However, the Arla boss did not want to predict to the BBC how much butter would cost later this year.
“At the moment, we are trying to get as much butter and cream [as we can] out of our producers,” he said.
Butter prices
The latest figures from the EU Milk Market Observatory (MMO) show that EU spot butter prices are now at €5,500/t.
This is up 86% year-on-year and prices only look set to increase.
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