Dairy producers should anticipate smaller milk checks this month, based on a preview of Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) milk class prices. October 2025 FMMO pooling estimates, uniform prices and producer price differentials (PPDs) will be released Nov. 11-14. Watch Progressive Dairy’s website for an update.
As announced previously, the October 2025 advanced Class I base price is $18.04 per hundredweight (cwt), down 66 cents from September and the lowest since June. It’s $5.13 per cwt less than October 2024.
Announced Nov. 5, October FMMO Class II, III and Class IV milk prices were lower than September. In the case of Class II and Class IV milk classes, monthly prices were the lowest in more than four years.
November class prices
Class prices announced on Nov. 5 were:
- At $16.02 per cwt, the October Class II milk price is down $1.37 from September and down $4.99 from October a year ago. It’s the lowest since April 2021.
- The October Class III milk price fell 68 cents from the previous month to $16.91 per cwt. It’s down $5.94 per cwt from October 2024 and the lowest since April 2024.
- At $14.30 per cwt, the October Class IV milk price is down $1.87 from September and down $6.60 from this time last year. It’s the lowest since March 2021.
The gap between October 2025 Class III and Class IV milk prices was $2.61, the widest since last December, giving incentives for depooling of higher-priced Class IIII milk from some FMMO pools.
Butterfat, protein values
The values of butterfat and protein moved in opposite directions in October. Butterfat dipped to $1.8252 per pound in October, down almost 37 cents from September and $1.26 less than the value of about $3.09 one year ago. It’s the lowest butterfat value since March 2021.
The value of milk protein settled at $2.8761 per pound in October, climbing about 17 cents from September and the highest since October 2024, when the value peaked at $3.3238 per pound.
Compared to September, the October value of nonfat solids was 91 cents per pound, down about 6.5 cents. Other solids inched 1.5 cents higher to 33.6 cents per pound.
Looking ahead
Based on FMMO advanced prices and current futures prices, the outlook for November regional uniform milk prices is anticipated to be lower yet again.
As announced previously, the November 2025 advanced Class I base price is $16.75 per cwt, down $1.29 from October and the lowest since September 2021. It’s $5.78 per cwt less than November 2024.
November 2025 Class II, III and IV milk prices will be announced on Dec. 3. As of trading on Nov. 4, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) November Class III milk futures price settled at $17.02 per cwt, up 11 cents per cwt from October’s price. However, the November Class IV milk futures price closed at just $13.66 per cwt, down 64 cents from October. If Class III-IV futures prices hold, the November Class III-IV milk price gap will be $3.36 per cwt, adding incentives for Class III depooling.
