For the first quarter of 2019, global milk supplies remain subdued, which is the main reason dairy market prices have held firm this year. A large flush of milk out of Europe this spring would almost certainly have caused dairy markets to tumble.

Figures released this week by two of the world’s largest dairy exporters, New Zealand and the Netherlands, show milk production in both countries is tightening. In New Zealand, the world’s largest dairy exporter, milk production for March plunged more than 8% compared with last year to 1.65bn litres.

This follows on from February milk production in New Zealand, which was flat compared to February 2018 at 1.8bn litres. While milk production is now tailing off in New Zealand, the country did enjoy robust growth in milk supplies before Christmas.

Milk production in New Zealand for the first 10 months of the 2018/19 milking season (June to March) now stands just below 19bn litres, which is more than 3% ahead of the same period last year. It is likely that New Zealand will finish out the 2018-19 milking season in May with total production close to 21.3bn litres.

Phosphates

Closer to home, milk production in the Netherlands continue its monthly decline.

For March 2019, Dutch milk production came in at 1.15bn litres, which was down almost 2.5% on last year. Dutch milk collections have now declined for the past 14 consecutive months as phosphate quotas introduced last year limit production.

For the first quarter of 2019 (January to March), milk production in the Netherlands stands at 3.3bn litres, which is more than 3% behind last year.