Liquid milk sales have increased in England and Wales quite significantly over the past 12 months.
The latest figures, referencing the year ended March 31 2014, show that total market value continues to show growth, driven by both volume growth and higher average prices. The volume growth has been driven by a combination of more households purchasing milk and buying more per visit. In comparison to a year earlier, average prices for milk have increased by 1.3%.
Significantly, the market share of pasteurised milk has increased to 86.5% in volume terms over the year, up from 85.2%. By value, its market share has also risen, from 81.8% to 82.4%.
Filtered milk, which has the next largest market share, has seen volumes fall by 10.7%, to 293 million litres, down from 328 million litres in the previous year. This meant its market share by volumes fell by 0.7%, to 5.6%. Despite higher average prices, its market share by value has also been affected, and is down by 0.6%.
UHT milk, which accounts for around 5-6% of the market, has also seen volumes and value decrease over the year. Volumes were down by 8.7%, however the effect on value has been more limited due to higher average prices, with expenditure down 2.5%.
Other types of milk, which includes non-dairy products such as almond milk, have a relatively small market share (0.9% by volume). However this type of liquid milk has had a relatively strong increase in both value and volume compared to the previous year. Volumes are up by 34.9%, while value is up by 38.6%. Increasing numbers of households purchasing these types of milk, and doing so more frequently, has contributed to this growth