Milk processors need to continue supporting their dairy farmers by maximising the prices paid for April milk supplies, Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) dairy chair Stephen Arthur has said.

Milk volumes continue to lag well behind 2023 levels, with the Central Statistics Office confirming a drop of almost 6% in the first quarter of 2024 compared with the year before, while costs associated with the very difficult spring weather have extended into May.

“We acknowledge the support paid by some processors for March milk, but it needs to extend into April to alleviate some of the cashflow pressure among dairy farmers at this stage,” he said.

The outlook is stable, with the latest Global Dairy Trade auction from New Zealand showing an overall index increase of 1.8%.

“Dairy markets are firming up. We need our processors to return every cent they can to dairy farmers to support them during this very difficult period,” he concluded.