Global milk deliveries

Updated 29 May 2025

Trends in global milk supplies impact on prices. Deliveries in the six key exporting regions are tracked to provide an overview of current production levels and trends in global milk supplies.

The milk production regions included are the EU-27, UK, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Combined, they account for more than 65% of global cow's milk production and around 80% of global exports of dairy products.

• Global milk deliveries averaged 833.6 million litres per day in March, a 1.0% increase compared to the same period of the previous year across the selected regions. It is the highest monthly figure recorded in the last two years. Argentina saw strong year on year growth, while New Zealand, the UK and the US also increased. The EU and Australia declined during the period.
• Milk deliveries in the EU are estimated to have averaged 404.9 million litres per day in March, a 0.4% decline compared to the same period of the previous year. Individual country data has not yet been published, but EU Commission commentary states that Denmark, France and the Netherlands experienced the largest volume decline. Some of the decline can be attributed to the spread of Bluetongue.
• UK daily deliveries averaged 44.2 million litres per day in March, up 3.8% on last year, equating to an additional 1.6 million litres per day. Favourable weather and dairy producer economics supported production in the run up to the Spring flush.
• US production was up by 0.9% year on year, with a 2.5 million litre per day increase on the average deliveries in March, compared to the same month last year. Rising cow numbers and a slowing in the spread of Avian flu has been reported.
• Australia recorded a marginal decline in milk production, with deliveries down by just 0.04% compared to last year, to sit at an average of 19.2 million litres per day. High operating costs and unfavourable weather is limiting growth.
• New Zealand deliveries were up 2.0 million litres per day on last year’s figure, with March average daily deliveries at 56.9 million litres per day. Industry commentary describes investment in supplementary feed as the milk price has been positive.
• Argentina’s production saw an increase in March, up by 3.6 million litres per day (15.9%) in comparison to weak yields in March 2024. Industry reports describe better weather and more favourable economics creating optimism.

• The tracker is a baseline for comparing against actual production, not a forecast of milk production.
• The baseline is calculated using historic month-on-month movements in milk production, providing information on a typical milk year in each of the key regions.