The domestic milk intake by creameries and pasteurisers fell by 4.4% in January, compared to the corresponding figure for January 2019.
The figure for last month stood at 167.7 million litres, down from 175.3 million litres in January 2019, according to data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The average fat content rose very slightly, from 4.21% to 4.28%, while data for imported milk intake (not including packaged milk for retail) was not available.
Of this, whole milk sales fell from 26.9 million litres to 25.7 million litres; and skimmed/semi-skimmed milk sales also saw a slight decrease, from 17.9 million litres to 17.4 million litres.
Butter production was down by 10.4%, from 8,200t to 7,300t, while the most recent figures for skimmed milk powder and cheese were not available.
Figures for December
The CSO also provided figures for the month of December 2019, for a month-on-month comparison for January 2020.
The December figures were as follows:
- Domestic milk intake – 243.7 million litres;
- Fat content – 4.58%;
- Imported milk intake – N/A;
- Total milk sold for human consumption – 42.1 million litres;
- Whole milk sales – 25.8 million litres;
- Skimmed/semi-skimmed milk sales – 16.3 million litres;
- Butter – 11,200t;
- Skimmed milk powder – 10,200t;
- Cheese – N/A.
The CSO figures also show that, in the year 2019, Ireland’s total milk intake by creameries and pasteurisers stood at 8.2 million tonnes, a 5.3% increase on the figure for 2018, which was 7.8 million tonnes.
This 5.3% figure was the largest scale of an increase in the EU (including the UK) over the two years.