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Dairy prices rose 1.7% at Tuesday’s Global Dairy Trade auction, with powders once again driving the increase.
Skimmed milk powder (SMP) prices were 3.3% to an average price of €2,724/t, while whole milk powder (WMP) prices were up 2.2% to €2,998/t.
This week butter prices were down 1.3%, while cheddar prices were up 2.5%.
Last week, the Irish Farmers Journal revealed that spot prices for SMP increased further and were trading at close to €2,500/t.
In the last year, SMP prices have risen by almost 60% and are currently trading at their highest level since August 2014.
The big driver of this price growth for SMP has been the apparently insatiable appetite of China. In the first eight months of this year (Jan-Aug), exports of SMP from the EU to China are up more than 60% year-on-year, standing at close to 91,500t.
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