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A total of 40t of SMP were sold out of intervention at a price of €1,440.50/t in this latest tender, and all of the product was sold to bidders in Poland.
In total, the Commission received bids for 1,790t of SMP, with the lowest bid received being €1,201/t.
This is the first time since the end of June that SMP has been sold out of intervention. Back then, 100t of product were sold at €1,850/t.
Depressed market
The SMP market continues to be depressed. This has been driven by the strong butter market in Europe over the past two years. SMP is, essentially, a by-product of butter.
For evert 1t of butter produced, 2t of SMP are created.
Some 380,000t of the product remain in sheds across Europe, after being sold into intervention.
Intervention is now closed until March 2018, but European Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan said he is looking at changing the intervention process.
Intervention creates a floor for SMP, allowing processors to sell it into storage at a price until such a time that it can then be sold on the open market.
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