Domestic milk intake by milk processors and co-ops was estimated at 865.3 million litres in August 2026, figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show.

This was a decrease of 79.4 million litres (-8.4%) when compared with August 2025, and down 21.9 million litres (-2.5%) when compared with the same month in 2024.

For the period January to August 2026, domestic milk intake was estimated at 6.43 billion litres.

This was down 166.8 million litres (-2.5%) when compared with the same period in 2025, while it was up 225.6 million litres (+3.6%) when compared with January to August 2024.

Stephanie Kelleher, statistician in the agriculture section of the CSO, said fat content for August 2026 was 4.5%, up from 4.23% in August 2025.

Protein content dropped from 3.72% to 3.61% in the 12 months to August 2026.

Butter production in August 2026 was 29,800t, down from 30,500t in August 2025.

Skimmed milk powder production rose from 12,700t in August 2025 to 13,600t in August 2026.

GDT

Meanwhile, the Global Dairy Trade (GDT) index has increased following the latest trading event held this week.

The index has increased by 1.2% to 1,177 as a result of the auction which took place yesterday (Tuesday, October 6).

The result reverses the impact of a 1.1% fall in the index after the last trading event in mid September.

This week's event saw a total of 41,692t of dairy commodities traded with an average winning price of $3,928/t.