Market Update
February 1, 2012
Dairy Market Update: U.S. Milk Production Sets a Record in 2011
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates total U.S. milk production in 2011 was 196,216 million pounds, up 1.76 percent from 2010 and a new record-high level. The milk production increase seen last year was almost the same as the average year-over-year increase for the past 10 years. Compared to the 10-year...
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December 21, 2011
Market Update: Retail Milk Prices Do Track with Farm Milk Costs
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist It never ceases to amaze me when I hear claims that the price of milk per gallon at retail does not change when the cost of farm milk to processors changes. The latest one comes from Robert J. Gray, a senior dairy policy adviser for Northeast Dairy Farmers Cooperatives, who wrote a letter to the editor following...
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November 22, 2011
Market Update: World Dairy Situation 2011
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist The International Dairy Federation (IDF) last month released its World Dairy Situation 2011 report during the World Dairy Summit in Parma, Italy. This annual report highlights global trends in farm milk production, dairy processing and world trade in dairy products and brings strategic insights about the...
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October 26, 2011
Market Update: Overall Dairy Demand Strong, but Fluid Milk Falters
September farm milk production was higher than the same month last year, the 20th straight month of year-over-year increases. The U.S. Department of Agriculture forecasts that milk production for the 2011 calendar year will be a new record high of 195.9 billion pounds, up 1.6 percent from last year’s record. USDA reports most of that growth is coming...
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September 28, 2011
Market Update: Stop Tinkering and Focus on Real Order Reform
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist Wrapped up in the current debates about dairy policy reform are discussions of what changes could and should be made to milk price regulations. The Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy recently reaffirmed a position first taken with the release of the Bain & Co. report, which found the U.S. dairy industry has...
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Market Update: U.S. Dairy Exports Set Another Record in First Half of 2011
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist Dairy product exports for the January-through-June period set new records this year, both in terms of product volume and dollar value. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service reports that over 1.9 billion pounds of U.S. dairy products left our borders for destinations abroad in the...
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July 27, 2011
Dairy Market Update: Fluid Milk Product Sales Continue to Fall
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated that total U.S. fluid milk product sales declined 1.4 percent in 2010, the largest annual decline since the Agricultural Marketing Service began publishing monthly fluid product sales data in January 2000. Unfortunately, that trend has continued into 2011, with...
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June 29, 2011
Market Update: Outlook for Global Dairy Growth Remains Strong
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist Perhaps the most apt descriptor for the dairy markets this year is uncertainty. However, in the nearer term, dairy futures prices remain well above historical averages, and mid- to longer-term outlooks consistently point to more growth. Our dairy markets are bombarded daily by new market information and...
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May 25, 2011
Dairy Market Update: Can Government Policy Tame Dairy Price Volatility without Hurting Dairy Exports?
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist A number of dairy policy proposals claim to be able to rein in domestic dairy price volatility with absolutely no negative consequences for the U.S. dairy industry - or so their proponents would have you believe. A look at actual market data from recent years, as well as the results of recent analyses of...
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April 27, 2011
Dairy Market Update: Would Competitive Pay Price Be Higher or Lower Than Federal Order Formula Prices?
By Bob Yonkers, Ph.D., IDFA Chief Economist In preparation for the 2012 Farm Bill debate, proposals for reforming dairy policy in general and milk pricing regulation in particular are being discussed around the country. Several of the proposals made to date include eliminating minimum Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) farm milk prices on one or more...
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