June milk production may have been up 2% from a year ago but current milk production is slowing across much of the country, according to USDA’s weekly update. The combination of hot weather and typical seasonal declines is slowing availability of manufacturing milk. In the Midwest, cooler weather is expected to keep milk volumes closer to steady. Spot loads of milk are available, but are becoming harder to source.
Class I demand is sluggish, but negotiations for the new school year are beginning in various parts of the country. Cream demand remains good with ice cream, frozen novelties and cream cheese plants working steady to slower schedules. Some butter/powder plants continue to sell cream at favorable prices. Sales of condensed skim are being made to various Class III manufacturers and are helping to alleviate pressure on drying plants.
However, FC Stone dairy broker, Dave Kurzawski, warned in his July 21 Insider Opening Bell: “Milk production growth is beginning to happen, but it’s not necessarily the 1.9 percent increase that has caught my attention. It is the second month in a row the USDA increased the prior month’s production by more than 20 million pounds. A trend may be developing here.”
Source: DairyBusiness Update Daily
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