The payment, backdated to July 1 last year and paid this Friday, takes the average price farmgate price for this season to $6.05/kg MS.
Fonterra’s announcement follows moves two weeks ago by Bega Cheese and Saputo to increase payments to their dairy farmers.
Fonterra has now matched the average supplier payment of Saputo while Bega Cheese’s milk price was slightly lower at $5.99/kg MS.
Fonterra Australia managing director René Dedoncker said the increase would help support its farmers who continued to face challenging conditions.
“There have been some positive signs in global conditions, with recent improvements in Global Dairy Trade prices and the clearing of SMP (skim milk powder) stockpiles in Europe, however Australian production continues to decline, due to drought and high input costs,” Mr Dedoncker said.
“This is leading to increased competition across our dairy regions, particularly in northern Victoria.
“Rising costs for feed and water continue to be a challenge for our farmers, and we hope this price increase helps to ease some of the pressure for the remainder of the season.
“We will continue to monitor currency and global dairy prices and keep our farmers updated throughout the season.”