In news affecting a dairy producer's bottom line the third week of June 2025:
- July’s Class I base milk price climbs to $18.82 per cwt
- Canadian government passes bill to protect dairy in future trade talks
- Fluid milk sales in April continue lower trend
- GDT index down for third sale in a row
- Scholarship opportunities available for attending YDLI
- Cayuga Milk Ingredients debuts consumer good plant
- USDA announces new Texas facility to aid in battle against NWS
July’s Class I base milk price climbs to $18.82 per cwt
The Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) advanced Class I base price rebounded $1.56 per hundredweight (cwt) from June to July, leading to a Class I base price of $18.82 per cwt but remained $2.29 per cwt lower from the same month a year ago. July’s price is reflective of the monthly advanced Class III milk pricing factor ($9.66) being the “higher-of” and used as the Class I mover in the milk pricing formula.
Class I zone differentials are added to the base price principal pricing points to determine the actual Class I price in each FMMO. With those additions, July’s Class I prices will average about $20.12 per cwt across all FMMOs, with the highest in the Appalachian FMMO at $21.02 per cwt and the lowest in the Arizona FMMO at $19.07 per cwt. Those prices will impact July regional FMMO uniform prices which will be announced Aug. 11-14.
July’s base skim milk price for Class I was $9.66 per cwt, increasing $1.11 per cwt from the month prior. The spread in the monthly advanced Class III skim milk pricing factor ($9.66 per cwt) and advanced Class IV skim milk pricing factor ($8.97) was 69 cents. The advanced butterfat pricing factor was also higher month over month, reaching $2.71 per pound, reflective of the updated make allowances and yield factors under the FMMO revisions.
Canadian government passes bill to protect dairy in future trade talks
Both the Canadian House and Senate passed Bill C-202, which will make it illegal for Canada’s trade minister to agree to any trade deal that would reduce the tariffs on imports or increase the tariff-rate quota on supply-managed products including dairy, eggs and poultry.
The bill awaits royal assent before officially becoming law.
In passing the legislation, Canada essentially won’t be able to use dairy, eggs or poultry in trade negiotiations. This comes as the U.S., Canada and Mexico will be entering trade talks in the renewal of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) this summer.
Fluid milk sales in April continue lower trend
Fluid milk sales for April 2025 are 1.8% lower than the same month a year earlier. According to data from the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service:
- Total sales: April 2025 sales of packaged fluid milk products were estimated at 3.5 billion pounds, down 1.8% from the same month a year earlier. At 14.3 billion pounds, year-to-date sales of all fluid products are 1.5% lower than last year.
- Conventional products: Monthly sales totaled 3.3 billion pounds, down 2% from the same month a year earlier. Sales of flavored whole milk were 12.7% higher than last year, while sales of flavored fat-reduced milk were down 10.7% from April 2024. Year-to-date 2025 sales were estimated at 13.3 billion pounds, down 1.8% from this time last year. Whole milk and flavored whole milk year-to-date sales continue to be slightly higher than 2024.
- Organic products: April sales totaled 251 million pounds, 0.3% higher than a year earlier. Whole milk sales were up 7.7%, but flavored whole milk sales were down 43%. Year-to-date organic fluid milk sales were estimated at 1 million pounds, up 2.4% from this time last year. Organic represented about 7.1% total fluid product sales in April.
The U.S. figures are based on consumption of fluid milk products in Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) areas, which account for approximately 92% of total U.S. fluid milk sales, and adding the other 8% from outside FMMO-regulated areas. Sales outlets include food stores, convenience stores, warehouse stores/wholesale clubs, nonfood stores, schools, the food service industry and home delivery.
GDT index down for third sale in a row
The price index of dairy product prices sold on the Global Dairy Trade (GDT) platform was down 1% in the auction held June 17. This was the third consecutive trading event with a drop in the index.
Compared to the previous auction, prices for individual product categories were mostly lower. Cheddar cheese and butter were the two products to trade higher by 5.1% and 1.4%, respectively. Lactose was down 3.6%, and whole milk powder was down 2.1%. Mozzarella, anhydrous milkfat and skim milk powder were down by 1%-2%. Buttermilk powder was not traded.
The GDT platform offers dairy products from several global companies: Fonterra (New Zealand), Darigold, Valley Milk and Dairy America (U.S.), Inalpi (Italy), Arla (Denmark), Arla Foods Ingredients (Denmark), BMI (Germany), Kerry Dairy (Ireland) and Solarec (Belgium).
The next GDT auction is July 1.
Scholarship opportunities available for attending YDLI
The Young Dairy Leaders Institute (YDLI) is a nationally recognized three-phase leadership and communication skills development program for young adults ages 22 to 45 involved in the dairy industry. Full-time dairy farmers who apply for YDLI will be considered for one of three full-ride scholarships.
Dairy producers working with all breeds of dairy cattle and allied dairy industry members are encouraged to apply. YDLI Class 14 will have on-site meetings in Dallas, Texas, Feb. 2-5, 2026, and Feb. 1-4, 2027. Applications for the program are due Aug. 1, and may be downloaded from the Holstein Foundation website.
Dairy producers applying for YDLI that are Holstein Association USA members are automatically eligible for scholarships and do not need to fill out a separate application.
Cayuga Milk Ingredients debuts consumer good plant
Cayuga Milk Ingredients (CMI), in collaboration with Tetra Pak, announces the grand opening of CMI’s expanded facility in Auburn, Cayuga County, as part of a two-phase, multimillion-dollar expansion and investment in New York state.
CMI is a unique leader in the global food market with 1.5 billion pounds of milk produced annually on 65,000 acres of fertile land. The company is owned and operated by 22 farm families with 32 farm locations in the Finger Lakes region of New York state, with a dairy ingredients portfolio that includes milk powders, protein powders and fluid milk products. With the addition of its new consumer goods dairy plant, CMI is positioning itself as a vertically integrated, premium contract manufacturing solution for value-added dairy products, with a commitment to maximizing their nutritional impact while minimizing environmental impact.
CMI has already supported over 350 construction-related jobs during the development of the plant and expects to add an additional 150 new jobs once the facility opens in fall of 2025.
USDA announces new Texas facility to aid in battle against NWS
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins recently launched an $8.5 million sterile New World screwworm (NWS) fly dispersal facility in South Texas and announced a sweeping five-pronged plan to enhance the USDA’s already robust ability to detect, control and eliminate this pest. These urgent actions are necessary to finish the fight against NWS and protect the U.S.
NWS is a devastating pest that causes serious and often deadly damage to livestock, wildlife, pets and in rare cases, humans. While NWS has been eradicated from the U.S. for decades, recent detections in Mexico as far north as Oaxaca and Veracruz, about 700 miles away from the U.S. border, led to the immediate suspension of live cattle, horse and bison imports through U.S. ports of entry along the southern border on May 11.
The USDA also recently invested $21 million toward renovating an existing fruit fly production facility in Metapa, Mexico, which will provide an additional 60-100 million sterile flies a week to stop the spread, on top of the over 100 million already produced in Panama. This will result in at least 160 million flies per week.
