For 2021, cheese, butter, nonfat dry milk (NDM) and whey price forecasts were lowered from last month on relatively high stocks and weaker demand. As a result, projected 2021 Class III and Class IV prices were lowered to $16.80 and $15.40 per hundredweight (cwt), respectively. The 2021 all milk price forecast was lowered 55 cents from last month to $18.30 per cwt, nearly the same as the 2020 average of $18.24 per cwt.
In the USDA’s look ahead to 2022, milk production was forecast at 231.6 billion pounds, up 500 million pounds from last month as cow numbers continue to grow. If realized, 2022 production would be up about 1.5% from the 2021 forecast.
For 2022, price forecasts for cheese and butter were lowered on larger expected stocks and higher production, but price forecasts for NDM and whey are unchanged. With lower cheese and butter prices, the annual average Class III ($16.75 per cwt) and Class IV ($15.75 per cwt) price forecasts were reduced from last month, and the projected all-milk price was cut 25 cents to $18.50 per cwt.