Milk supply fails to hit highs seen in 2023

Milk supplies this spring are up on 2024 levels but have generally failed to reach the higher volumes recorded in 2023.

Delayed calvings this spring, which are generally running a week to 10 days back on normal, have fed into the drop in milk supplies over the last two years.

Dairygold stated that milk supply for the year-to-date is up 2.5% versus the same period in 2024, but down 13.5% versus 2023.

For the month of February, Dairygold’s milk supply is down 3.5% versus 2024 and down 10% versus 2023, it told the Irish Farmers Journal.

A spokesperson for Tirlán said milk supply for the year-to-date is 14% ahead of the same period in 2024, but is just in line with volumes for the same period in 2023.

Kerry Dairy Ireland said early season volumes were marginally up at the end of January compared to 2024 but it did not give a comparison with 2023.

It is a similar story in Lakeland Dairies, where the co-op confirmed that supplies were up 2-3% compared to 2024 in both the north and south but no comparative figures were available for 2023.

Grass growth

Joe Patton, head of dairy knowledge transfer at Teagasc, said grass growth this month has been relatively good.

However, poor ground conditions, particularly in the south and southwest, following the recent heavy rains have restricted farmers’ ability to make the most of these covers.

Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) figures show that dairy calf registrations for the year to date (up to Friday, 21 February) were down 6% or 26,348 head compared to the same period in 2024.