The number of registered milk supply contracts fell by around 20% in the 2019/2020 milk year compared with the previous year, according to the National Milk Agency.
In its Annual Reports and Accounts 2020, the agency noted that the number of registered milk supply contracts during the 2019/2020 milk year stood at 1,338, a decrease of 342 on previous period.
Of these, the number of all-year-round (AYR) contracts decreased by 337 to 1,195 while the number of winter contracts decreased by 5 to 143.
As can be seen by these figures, AYR contracts continued to be the main contract type, representing 89% of contracts and 99% of milk supplies.
Winter contracts represented 11% of contracts and 1% of milk supplies.
Since the establishment of the agency the number of registered contracts has reduced by 60% from 3,344 in 1995.
Milk supplies purchased under registered contracts in 2019/20 were 9% higher than sales, mainly due to increased purchases by one processor, compared with being 4% higher in 2018/19.
Seven processors purchased supplies using only the manufacturing milk price plus bonus (MMP) pricing system, while two processors used the flat price system only.
Two further processors had contracts that applied the flat system in specific winter months and the MMP in other months.
In 2019/2020, the MMP system was applied in 78% of AYR contracts, accounting for 78% of supplies.
The flat system was applied to 22% of AYR contracts, accounting for 22% of supplies.
The average price paid under the AYR MMP system contracts in 2019/20 was 35.08c/L, a decrease of 0.15c/L or 0.4% on the previous year.
The average price paid under the AYR FLAT system contracts in 2019/20 was 34.44c/L, a decrease of 0.07c/L or 0.2% on the previous year.
The average price paid under all AYR contracts in 2019/20 was 34.94c/L, a decrease of 0.14c/L or 0.4% on the previous year.
The annual average price of 35.08c/L paid under the MMP system was 0.64c/L higher than the annual average price paid under the FLAT system in 2019/20, compared with 0.72c/L in the previous milk year.