Wilson said fundamentals in the sector were solid and that Fonterra remained in a strong position.
"We are aware of how anxious our farmers are at the moment but we have a huge amount of confidence in the dairy sector globally. That has not changed."
The current oversupply was a result of high prices in 2013/14, which encouraged farmers around the world to produce more.
"Most of our farmers understand what is happening," he said. "They are disappointed and it was such a surprise to see prices come back so quickly, but they have seen what has happened on global dairy markets."
Wilson said most farmers already ran lean businesses but he expected to see a deferral of spending on things like maintenance and less spending on supplementary feed.
"They don't have a lot of room to move, so we encourage them to talk to their banks early," Wilson said.
"I'm learning from the banks that they have been supportive for most of our farmers."
Another factor driving oversupply in many of the world's major dairy-producing countries was unusually good weather.
Complicating matters further was high inventory levels in China and Russia's ban on dairy imports from several western countries, which has resulted in higher than normal milk powder production in many EU countries.
New Zealand produces about 18 billion litres of milk a year compared with 100 billion litres for the United States and 140 billion in the EU. Small increases in American and European production can have a big impact on global dairy markets.
Wilson said he was convinced the world's supply/demand imbalance was cyclical rather than structural.
He welcomed the Reserve Bank's decision to cut the official cash rate to 3.25 per cent, and said the resulting decline in the New Zealand dollar's value would give farmers some relief.
Wilson said Fonterra's decision to restructure its head office, with the possible loss of hundreds of jobs, was necessary to improve the company's agility in times of low prices.
"It's about being able to make fast decisions to be able to react to a rapidly changing market place."
Some farmers have questioned Fonterra's structure, as many had mistakenly assumed its dividend would increase as a result of lower milk prices.
There has also been consternation about the Fonterra Shareholders' Fund unit price, which closed yesterday at $4.69 - well down from its $5.50 offer price and $6.66 opening price when the units listed.
Wilson said Fonterra's two businesses - its ingredients business and its consumer and food service business - were "intrinsically linked".
"You can't have either-or in our business. They are very much businesses together."
Fonterra's consumer and food service business had 27 per cent growth this year, but there had also been remarkable growth in farm milk production.
Production has rises 4.6 per cent a year over the past five years, compared with 1.7 per cent in each of the previous five years.
"So getting that processing capacity in front of our farmers is certainly slowing us down at the moment," Wilson said. "We are not as efficient at the peak of the season, because we are dealing with so much more milk growth from farmers."
Wilson said he expected Fonterra to get ahead of the game this year thanks to the huge new plant at Darfield and big expansion projects - mostly involving more wholemilk driers - for its Edendale, Lichfield and Pahiatua plants.
"We have spent just over $2.3 billion just to get our milk processed from farm to port," he said. The expansion had been a drain on Fonterra's profitability.
"It's a huge problem for us, but it is a high quality problem."
Fonterra now takes significantly more milk, which it is statutorily obliged to take under Dairy Industry Restructuring Act regulations.
Fonterra's six-month net profit was $183 million, down 16 per cent on a year earlier and well below market and farmer expectations.
Wilson said it was difficult to assess the true performance of the company from the interim result.
"Our co-operative is very strong. At the end of the year, we will put a lot more information in front of our farmers as to how their investments in consumer and food services are performing," he said.
"I'm sure that they will be very happy with their performance, with the exception of Australia, which has been struggling.
"We know that the fundamentals in our sector are very strong," he said.
"We will get through this period. There is no doubt about that."
