It’s been a truism of the Ontario dairy industry for years that consumers are drinking less milk. But are people acquiring a taste for “cold, delicious milk” once again?

In February, Dairy Farmers of Ontario Chief Business Officer Kristin Benke reported “relatively strong” fluid milk and cream sales through the final quarter of 2023, a bit of a switch from the segment’s slow decline in popularity. Those sales have “actually been pretty stable, and we’ve seen some increases in cream demand,” Benke told a gathering of milk producers at the 2024 Dairy Days conference in St. Isidore.

“Fluid milk being positive in terms of growth in all categories is really strange,” she observed, noting that milk consumption had been declining for 20 years until about 2019.

It’s a positive development for producers because fluid milk and cream are still the single highest-value market supplied by Ontario farmers, representing about 30 % of their monthly milk cheque revenue. Milk that goes into cheese is a close second.

“So those are two huge markets in terms of the base of your quota, and those are markets we want to be doing well if we don’t want to have a quota cut,” she said.

Intriguingly, consumers have shifted away from drinking low-butterfat milk in favour of richer blends. “So people have stopped drinking skim milk or 1 %, and there’s an increase in sales of 2 % and 3.25 % milk,” she said.

Butterfat retailed in fluid milk yields the highest return to dairy farmers, substantially better than when it is removed and sold as sticks of butter. However, since 2016, demand for butter has been growing faster than any other dairy component, although lately that demand “has been really impacted in part by price,” according to Benke. “Things have been really volatile.”

Dairy farmers are set to receive another 1.8 % increase on their milk cheques, starting in May. The increase would have occurred in February, but the Canadian Dairy Commission delayed the hike after independent grocers — under pressure to keep a lid on retail food prices — triggered an “exceptional circumstances” review. The latest rise follows a combined 18 % increase in milk prices okayed by the Canadian Dairy Commission since 2020, according to the Globe and Mail.

You can now read the most important #news on #eDairyNews #Whatsapp channels!!!

🇺🇸 eDairy News INGLÊS: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaKsjzGDTkJyIN6hcP1K