Dale Farm, the Northern Irish dairy co-op, reported an increase in turnover to £749.3m (€866.3m) and in profit before tax to £33m (€38.1m) in the 12 months to the end of March 2026.

Net debt at the co-op dropped to £29.6m (€34.2m), less than half the amount outstanding a year earlier.

The co-op said in a statement that the strong financial results were achieved after returning more than £10m to farmers through paying an additional 1p per litre (ppl) bonus 13th payment on every litre of milk supplied during the year. Dale Farm’s milk pool exceeds 1 billion litres and has grown by 16% over the last two years.

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During the financial year, Dale Farm paid an average of 40.38ppl, which the co-op said is a “leading and competitive milk price” which “compares favourably with average milk prices across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland”.

In April and May 2026, the co-op paid an additional market support payment to farmers of 1ppl and 2ppl respectively, which Dale Farm said was in response to changing market conditions.

The co-op is further expanding its cheddar production capacity at its Dunmanbridge facility, with upgrades to the processing plant set to increase throughput and bring total cheddar capacity at the plant to 100,000 tonnes.

'Consistency and stability'

Group chief executive officer Nick Whelan said: “There is consistency and stability in our strong performance and it is a testament to the quality and resilience of our farmers, the dedication and commitment of our people and the continued support of our customers.

“Further strengthening our leadership in dairy innovation, we have secured approval for three patents in curd technology. Demand for our functional curd products continues to grow rapidly, with increasing sales to processed cheese partners across international markets. We also continue to invest in the future of the business.”

Dale Farm chair Fred Allen said: “Our results reflect the strength of our co-operative model and the importance of working together as a team. We are proud to represent over 1,300 farming families and strive to continue to deliver a sustainable business that supports them through both opportunities and challenges.

“While the year has seen continued volatility, including rising input costs linked to global events, our focus has remained on delivering a consistent and competitive return for our farmers.”

See this week’s Irish Farmers Journal for more on Dale Farm’s results and an interview with CEO Nick Whelan.