Dairy Industry Snapshot

Avg. Price per Cwt.	2021	2022	2023 October Forecast	2023 December Estimate	2024 December Forecast
Boston Blend Price¹	17.84	24.96	19.78	20.01	20.32
Avg. WNY Blend²	16.87	23.92	19.04	19.01	19.53
USDA All-Milk Price³	18.53	25.34	20.40	20.60	20.00

November U.S. milk production decreased 0.6% from November 2022. The national dairy herd decreased by 44,000 head from the prior year, production per cow was flat.
On a state-by-state basis, in November, there were Y-O-Y increases in production in some major producing states, including, Idaho (0.3%), Michigan (1.9%), and Wisconsin (0.2%). Notably, California (-1.7%), Texas (-2.2%) and New Mexico (-10.1%) showed declines. In the Northeast, New York (0.5%) showed a modest increase, while Pennsylvania (-1.4%), and Vermont (-3.4%) had decreases.
Milk prices are expected to range from $19.00-21.30/cwt in 2024, and average $20.32 for the year (Boston Blend).
Feed and fuel costs have declined over the last year, but other input costs have risen, while milk prices have declined, tightening margins for dairy producers.

¹ Agri-Mark Price Forecast
² Upstate Niagara Price Forecast
³ USDA World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimate (WASDE)
⁴ USDA NASS Milk Production Report

Tags: dairy