GDT: Dairy prices fall for fourth straight auction, whole milk powder down 2.3%

This is the fourth consecutive drop for the Global Dairy Trade Auction. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Prices have slipped again in the latest Global Dairy Trade auction, held overnight, with a 1.6% dip across the board.

This was the fourth consecutive decline, following a 0.8% slide at the previous auction, a 4.3% decrease before that, and a 0.3% drop on August 19.

Whole milk powder - which has the biggest impact on Fonterra’s farmgate milk price - was down 2.3%, to an average of US$3696/MT.

Skim milk powder - Fonterra’s second-biggest reference product – fell a modest 0.5%, to an average of US$2599/MT.

Butter milk powder was down 2.3% to an average of US$2768/MT, and butter dropped 3.0% to an average of US$6712/MT.

In positive results, anhydrous milk fat was up 1.2% to an average of US$6916/MT, and cheddar rose 0.8% to an average of US$4858/MT.

The biggest percentage fall came from mozzarella, which tanked a whopping 11.8% to an average of US$3393/MT.

Lactose was not offered at this event.

A total of 42,013 MT of product was purchased by 125 successful bidders, compared to 39,093 MT and 123 winning bidders last time.

On August 21, Fonterra increased its 2024/25 season forecast Farmgate Milk Price from $10.00 per kgMS to $10.15 per kgMS, narrowing the range from $9.70–$10.30 per kgMS to $10.10–$10.20 per kgMS.

Fonterra also retained the $10.00 per kgMS forecast for the current 2025/26 season, while narrowing the range from $8.00–$11.00 per kgMS to $9.00–$11.00 per kgMS.

Fonterra confirmed the forecast and range as part of its annual results announcement on September 25.