Almost all co-ops held their milk price for October except for Aurivo and LacPatrick which both dropped just below the 30c/l mark.

A spokesperson for Aurivo said that “markets are considerably weaker and Aurivo will keep its returns and outlook under review”.

“We are now very much in the midst of a severe downturn in the dairy markets which is on a par with 2016. The business we operate must reflect the realities of the market,” LacPatrick Dairies chair Andrew McConkey said.

Glanbia, Kerry, Lakeland, Dairygold, Carbery and Arrabawn all announced unchanged prices for a fourth month in a row.

The latest Global Dairy Trade (GDT) auction saw a drop of 3.5% in the GDT price index on the last auction held on 6 November.

Elsewhere, LacPatrick recently said that it will be cutting Christmas bonuses for staff, which would normally be worth two weeks’ wages to staff members.

In a statement read to staff at its three plants in Monaghan town, Ballyrashane and Artigarvan, LacPatrick said that “urgent measures” were needed to “reduce costs and support the survival of the business until the merger with Lakeland completes”.