Barbers are pleased to declare that we will be holding our current level of milk price for a fourth consecutive month for May, ‘the largest seasonal milk production month of the year’.

As a result, the milk price will continue to deliver a Barber’s standard litre price of 28.30p/l, or 29.13p/l at milk prices.com’s manufacturing league table (BF @ 4.20%, PR @ 3.40%), or 30.16p/l if milk is supplied to Barbers at identical average constituents as supplied for the last completed month (Feb).

Domestic milk production continues at record levels. AHDB report this week that GB production is now running at a 29 year high, whilst UK production (including Northern Ireland) has moved from a low point of 12.9BN in 2012/13 to 14.8BN (est) for this milk year, the highest UK milk supply for 32 years.

The overall increase across the past six years amounts to +1.9BN litres (+15%).1.9 billion litres, when placed in context equates to a very similar collective amount of liquid retail milk sold combined by Tesco,Sainsbury and Asda annually.

Compounding this, has been the +46% increase in Irish milk production in the same period, where an additional +2.5BN litres has been produced.

As a consequence,this is undoubtedly placing a challenge on all processing capacity, with spot milk prices of c. 20p/l recorded as we move towards April (the lowest for three years).

In contrast, EU milk production in general remains below that of a year ago, and for

watchers of the GDT auctions, the eight consecutive fortnightly increases has resulted in southern hemisphere butter being priced ahead of product of EU origin.

This has resulted in an increase in dairy market activity and prices very recently.

That said, from a UK point of view, the serious Brexit cloud of uncertainty remains.