Kerry Group has announced it will pay farmer suppliers 35.24c/l, excluding VAT, for June supplies, the same amount it paid for May supplies.

This price will be paid on all milk supplied at 3.3% protein and 3.6% fat.

Last month's price was a decrease of just under 1c/l from the 36.02c/l, excluding VAT, that farmers received for April milk.

This drop in price caused some frustration among suppliers, leading to two separate protests at Kerry premises in Charleville and Tralee.

A Kerry spokesperson said: "Prices for commodity dairy have fallen again in the past month, with prices in the EU, US and GDT auction all moving in the same direction.

"The demand for dairy has declined further, with end users well stocked, slow to call off existing orders and slow to contract new volumes.

"Milk supply is currently more than enough to cover falling demand adding to downward price pressure."

Competitors

Last week, Lakeland Dairies announced it will pay suppliers 35.4c/l, excluding VAT, for milk supplied in June. This price also saw no change from May's milk price.