The interesting thing about an otherwise boring Dutch market is that it usually represents a basis that satellite markets price above, certainly in the case of skim milk powder, but currently it seems the dearest. Netherlands prices for feed grade whey and skim are posted as unchanged for six straight weeks, but certainly in France whey is offered cheaper, and even off-grade skim is now available, the bellwether of a falling market.

Cheese production is going gangbusters, so there’s no reason to see a hike in whey prices, and export activity is quieter than it has been. But that is a sideshow to the main event which has us all on the edge of our seats, and which we must make decisions on sooner than the politicians will likely make theirs, and that is whether to stock ahead of import tariffs. Nigh on £70 per tonne on whey and the business-breaking £793 on milk replacers forces decisions from UK milk powder consumers very soon……

BDC agri is the UK broker for Lacto Production milk and whey powder products.

For further information and prices, contact Greg Dunn on 01206 381521 or g.dunn@blackdiamondcommodities.com