Domestic milk intake by creameries and pasteurisers in November 2023 was down 19.8% to an estimated 388.7 million litres when compared to November 2022.
Intake was also 16.6% lower than during November 2021, according to figures published by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) today (Friday, January 12).
Fat content remained largely static at 5.0%, while protein content dropped marginally from 3.90% in November 2022 to 3.89% last year.
The CSO’s latest milk statistics also show that butter production was down from 18,200t in November 2022 to 16,300t in November 2023.
Domestic milk intake
In the eleven months from January to November last year, the domestic milk intake by creameries and pasteurisers was estimated at almost 8.3 billion litres.
This represents a decline of 276.9 million litres, or 3.2%, when compared to the corresponding period for 2022, and a drop of 234.8 million litres, or 2.8%, on 2021 levels.
Provisional figures show that total milk sold for human consumption fell from 40.0 million litres in November 2022 to 38.6 million litres during the same month in 2023.
Meanwhile, the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA) Dairy Committee chair, Noel Murphy said that co-ops “can and should” pay 39c/L for milk supplied in December.
There was “little doubt” that production last month was “particularly low” as farmers chose to dry off early in the face of “unacceptably slow price rises and stubbornly high inputs”, he said.