The Global Dairy Trade (GDT) dairy index has dropped slightly by 0.2% this week following a 3% rise last month. The average price was $3,255/t (€2,937.25/t).

A lower quantity of product was sold, with 34,410t of product moved at the auction in New Zealand on Tuesday 20 August.

The price of whole milk powder (WMP), the most important commodity traded on the platform, increased by 2.1% to $3,100/t (€2,797.38/t). Skimmed milk powder (SMP) prices dropped by 0.3% to $2,478/t (€2,236.10/t).

The price of butter fell by 3.4% this week to $4,025/t (€3,632.08/t), while anhydrous milk fat also fell 3.7% in price to $5,061/t (€4,566.95/t). Cheddar prices are up by 0.8% to $3,857/t (€3,480.48/t).

Butter price impact

Many Irish milk processors have blamed poor butter markets for a drop in their July milk prices.

A spokesperson for Dairygold said: “The weakness in butter prices has been caused by excess supply over demand. More recently, cheddar cheese returns have been negatively impacted, primarily due to the uncertainty over Brexit.”

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