The latest global dairy auction showed overall gains, driven by rising prices for several powder products, whilst the cheese market was split between rising mozzarella and falling cheddar.

The price index on the global dairy auction GDT (Global Dairy Trade) rose by 1.5 per cent at the auction on 21 July, with the average price ending at €3,339 per tonne.

Gains in buttermilk powder, skim milk powder and whole milk powder more than offset a sharp fall in the price of cheddar. Buttermilk powder stood out with the largest increase of all products at the auction, rising 10.5 per cent to an average price of €4,146 per tonne. Anhydrous milk fat (AMF) also advanced, up 1.1 per cent to €5,606 per tonne, whilst lactose traded 2.0 per cent higher at €1,506 per tonne.

Split cheese market

The cheese market moved in opposite directions. Mozzarella rose 1.3 per cent to €3,448 per tonne, whilst cheddar fell 6.5 per cent to €3,138 per tonne.

The powder market showed broad gains: skim milk powder rose 2.8 per cent to €2,830 per tonne, and whole milk powder rose 1.6 per cent to €3,051 per tonne. Butter was the only fat-based product to decline, falling 0.6 per cent to an average price of €4,641 per tonne.

The auction had 117 winning bidders out of 167 participating bidders, with 26,889 tonnes sold across 17 bidding rounds.

By Maja Løvstrup
Graph: Global Dairy Trade