Consumer milk prices rose two cents between January and March

The price of milk to consumers rose by two cents between January and March, reaching €0.86 per litre, but the amount paid to producers fell slightly over the period.

According to the Price Observatory, from January 1 to March 25, the price of a liter of semi-skimmed UHT milk increased from €0.84 to €0.86.

The peak was reached at the end of February, when a liter of milk began to cost 0.87 euros.

In the case of milk, the increase that consumers started paying did not affect the price paid to producers.

The Price Observatory only presents the amount paid to milk producers on the continent between 1 and 29 January, during which it remained stable at €0.47.

However, data from the Directorate of Planning, Policy and General Management (GPP) shows that the price of milk purchased from individual producers was set at €0.457 per kilogram (kg) in April, up from €0.460/kg in January.

In the Azores, the cost of milk purchased from individual producers (using a refrigerated tank on the farm and transport carried out by the plant) fell between January and April from €0.406/kg to €0.397/kg.

Still in the Azores, milk, purchased from individual producers and transported to collection points at the plant at the producer’s expense, increased in price from 0.387 euros per kg in January to 0.379 euros in April.

In the first four months of the year, the price of organic milk production fell from 0.563 euros per kg to 0.550 euros.

According to the European Union, the average price of raw (unprocessed) cow’s milk paid to producers in May was 46.22 euros per 100 kg.

Standing apart are countries such as Cyprus (63.76 euros), Malta (56.10 euros), Greece (52.20 euros) or Italy (49.55 euros).

At the bottom of the table are Lithuania (39.18 euros) and Latvia (39.72 euros).

In 2023, the price of industrial milk fell by 11 cents per liter in five months, a drop justified by market developments, as reported by the Portuguese Milk Producers Association (Aprolep) at the time.

In the case of butter, the increase in consumer prices was even more significant: on March 25 they rose from 8.10 euros per kg to 8.34 euros. At the same time, the average weekly price of butter from the factory is growing: on January 8 it was 563.70 euros per 100 kg, and on May 27 it was already 578.31 euros.

The highest value was reached on April 8, namely 588.48 euros per 100 kg.

The price of Flemish cheese also showed an upward trend in the first quarter, reaching €9.33 per kg at the end of March, higher than the €9.23 recorded on 1 January. Also at the factory, the price of Flemish cheese increased from 677.92 euros per 100 kg (January) to 684.77 euros.

The highest value was observed on January 29, when a kilogram of Flemish cheese cost 9.41 euros.

On March 25, a kilogram of Flemish cheese balls cost 9.47 euros, compared to 9.23 euros in January.