Australia: Dairy and Products Semi-annual

Milk production in Australia for 2024 is estimated to increase, for the first time since 2020, by 3.3 percent to 8.75 million metric tons (MMT). Industry confidence is elevated by high milk prices for dairy farmers over recent years and, also lower feed and fertilizer prices and broadly good seasonal conditions in 2024. However, the estimate for 2024 is tempered by dry conditions experienced in some dairy-producing regions. Domestic fluid milk consumption in 2024 is estimated to rise for the first time in six years. This is due to rapid population growth, now at a rate of 2.5 percent per annum. Factory use milk consumption is also estimated to increase by 5.6 percent, due mainly to increased milk production but also a fall in fluid milk exports. With this in mind, there is an expectation that production and exports of cheese, skim milk powder (SMP), and whole milk powder (WMP) will rise. For butter, production is estimated to fall but exports rise in 2024.