AHDB launches 'Milk Price Calculator' to help farmers achieve top dollar for their milk

With milk prices at their lowest for over six years, it’s more important than ever dairy farmers can achieve ‘top dollar’ for their milk.

While the majority of dairy farmers are not able to change milk buyers at the moment, some may be able to achieve a higher price for their milk by better matching what is in the bulk tank to what buyers pay the most for.

The complexities of milk contracts can make this a daunting task.

To assist producers to do just that, AHDB Dairy has developed a new online tool, the Milk Price Calculator (MPC), which has launched today.

The MPC is a handy, user-friendly tool which allows dairy farmers to input the specific details of their milk, in terms of delivery profile and quality, and check if there is potential to increase the income available from their contract.

Its value lies in providing a quick and easy way to answer the ‘what if’ questions such as ‘how would my milk price change if I managed to reduce my somatic cell counts or increase my butterfat?’

By entering the before and after farm data into the calculator, farmers will be able to get two sets of outputs, allowing them to compare the differences and clearly see how changes impact their milk price.

Dairy market to remain weak throughout 2016

The global dairy market outlook will remain weak throughout 2016, but with more upward pressure on prices as we head into 2017, according to the Rabobank Global Dairy Quarterly Q1 2016 report.

In the face of a cripplingly long price trough entering 2016, production growth in the world’s milk production regions has continued to slow.

Rabobank expects that, throughout 2016, slowing production growth will be matched by slow, but steady consumption growth in most main export regions.