Butter prices turned sharply upwards this week in Europe, increasing by €255/t. It’s a substantial increase and brings butter back to €7,375/t, which could be a sign that a further surge in price is going to come over the coming weeks. It was a good week for most dairy commodities, with cheddar cheese increasing by €85/t to €4,935/t and whole milk powder (WMP) increasing by €40/t to reach €4,295/t.
Butter prices turned sharply upwards this week in Europe, increasing by €255/t. It’s a substantial increase and brings butter back to €7,375/t, which could be a sign that a further surge in price is going to come over the coming weeks.
It was a good week for most dairy commodities, with cheddar cheese increasing by €85/t to €4,935/t and whole milk powder (WMP) increasing by €40/t to reach €4,295/t.
The only blip was for skim milk powder (SMP), which fell by €25/t, but the increase in butter prices more than made up for that.
It’s an interesting time to see prices increase, coming as it does when global trade is reeling from the impacts - or expected impacts - of trade wars and tariffs.
The main reason for prices to rise is due to a lack of supply, particularly in western Europe.
Supplies in the Netherlands, Germany and even here in Ireland are disappointing.
Irish co-ops are saying that supplies are up compared with last year, but back compared with 2023 and, thinking back, spring 2023 was not a bumper season by any means.
On the continent, bluetongue is getting the blame for lower supplies now, possibly having an impact on calving rates, considering that the midge was active when cows that are calving now were going in-calf.
It’s an ill wind that blows no good and if the lack of supply sends prices higher, producers will be happy to take the higher prices, but another year of scarce milk supplies will be bad news for the industry. Butter futures are listed at just under €7,500/t for the rest of 2025.
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