After all of the main buyers having held their base prices unchanged for April milk, there is some slippage in May prices set by Glanbia Milk, LacPatrick and Lakeland Dairies. There is no change in the base price paid by Aurivo, Dale Farm and Glanbia Cheese (see table below).

The pattern is similar to that seen in the Republic of Ireland, where some co-ops have held prices for May, while others have reduced the base but some have topped up their price with a bonus from Ornua (Irish Dairy Board) or, in the case of Glanbia, a distribution of cash from the co-op.

The Glanbia Milk price reduction by 1p/litre in NI also applies to milk bought from members of Fivemiletown Co-op.

A similar base price cut of 1p/l by Lakeland Dairies has been partly offset by payment of a top-up of 0.75p/l, leaving the price down by just 0.25p/l for the month of May.

The May 2016 prices are down on May 2015 levels by between 2.6p/l and 4.2p/l, although the Lakeland drop would be 3.35p/l in the absence of the top-up payment. Looking further back, the price falls compared with May 2014 are between 13.2p/l and 15.5p/l, the smallest reduction being at Dale Farm and the largest at LacPatrick (compared with base prices at Town of Monaghan).

This is the first month in which the former suppliers of milk to Fane Valley are included in the Lakeland payments. According to Lakeland Dairies, none of those suppliers have switched to an alternative milk buyer.

It remains to be seen what the Lakeland price will be for June milk as the 0.75p/l supplement is believed to be for one month only, mirroring a similar top-up of 1c/l being paid to their suppliers south of the border that partly offsets a base price cut of 1.5c/l. If there is no change for June, it would mean a drop of 0.75p/l for that month’s supplies to Lakeland in NI.

Asked about that prospect this week, Lakeland chief executive Michael Hanley said the aim is always to pay as much as possible for each litre and it would depend on returns obtained for the wide portfolio of dairy products sold. He said: ‘‘Let’s see what that brings.’’

Hanley indicated that there are signs of improving sentiment in the market, with milk output easing down in the UK, Germany and France and forecasts of reduced output in New Zealand. But it could be a long haul, with co-ops first seeking to reduce the extent to which they support prices.

With benchmarks of the Global Dairy Trade or Dutch Dairy Board prices used as a basis for some product sales contracts, there is a need for those prices to come off the floor.

Early signs of improvement have been seen in Britain, where Meadow Foods has announced an increase of 1p/l for July milk and another 1p/l for August.

Several other milk buyers in Britain have price drops listed for July but it is believed that these may be the last reductions and that the market there is on the turn as some farmers quit production and milk output is on the decline.