In the news affecting a dairy producer's bottom line the third week of December 2025:
- Class I base milk price slumps to start 2026
- Fluid milk sales down slightly in October
- GDT index drops for ninth consecutive event
- Wisconsin Teamsters ratify contracts at Foremost Farms
- Culver’s Thank You Farmers Project hits $8 million donation milestone
- Processing updates
Class I base milk price slumps to start 2026
The Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) advanced Class I base price will start the new year weaker, dipping to $16.35 per hundredweight (cwt). The base price is $1.86 per cwt below the base price for December 2025 and $4.03 per cwt less than January 2025. It’s the lowest Class I base milk price since April 2021.
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, January’s Class I prices should average about $20.47 per cwt across all FMMOs. The highest price is in the Florida FMMO at $23.15 per cwt, and the lowest price is $18.95 per cwt in the Arizona FMMO.
The January 2026 Class I base skim milk price was $11.17 per cwt, a decline of $1.57 cents from December 2025. The spread in the monthly advanced Class III milk pricing factor ($11.17 per cwt) and advanced Class IV skim milk pricing factor ($8.43 per cwt) was $2.74, with Class III being the “higher-of” and used as the Class I mover in the milk pricing formula. The advanced butterfat pricing factor was $1.59 per pound, a a 10-cent fall from December.
The Class I base price will impact January regional FMMO uniform milk prices, which will be announced Feb. 11-14, 2026.
Looking back at last year, the Class I base price averaged $18.94 per cwt in 2025, $1.41 less than 2024 and the lowest annual average since 2021.
Fluid milk sales down slightly in October
Fluid milk sales for October 2025 were down 0.1% from last year. According to data from the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service:
- Total sales: October 2025 sales of packaged fluid milk products were estimated at 3.8 billion pounds, down 0.1% from the same month a year earlier. At 35.3 billion pounds, year-to-date sales of all fluid products are 1% lower than last year.
- Conventional products: Monthly sales totaled 3.5 billion pounds, up 0.1% from the same month a year earlier. Sales of flavored whole milk were 10.5% higher than last year, and fat-free (skim) milk was up 13.3%. Sales of reduced fat (2%) milk and low-fat (1%) milk were down 5.6% and 3.5%, respectively. Year-to-date 2025 sales were estimated at 32.8 billion pounds, down 0.9% from this time last year.
- Organic products: October sales totaled 248 million pounds, down 3.2% than a year earlier. Sales were up 71.6% for flavored whole milk but down 24.9% for low-fat (1%) milk. Year-to-date organic fluid milk sales were estimated at 2.5 billion pounds, down 1.4% from this time last year. Organic represented about 6.6% total fluid product sales in October.
The U.S. figures are based on consumption of fluid milk products in 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 drops for ninth consecutive event
The price index of dairy product prices sold on the Global Dairy Trade (GDT) platform is down 4.4% in the auction held Dec. 16. This is the ninth consecutive downward change and the lowest index value since December 2023.
Compared to the previous auction, prices for individual product categories were mostly lower. Both lactose and mozzarella were up, 14.4% and 6.7%, respectively. Whole milk powder and anhydrous milkfat were both down by a little over 5%, and butter and skim milk powder were down by just over 2%. Cheddar cheese saw little change, and 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 Jan. 6.
Wisconsin Teamsters ratify contracts at Foremost Farms
More than 100 Teamsters at Foremost Farms’ Richland Center and Lancaster facilities in Wisconsin have overwhelmingly voted to ratify strong four-year agreements. The workers, represented by Teamsters Local 120, perform essential roles in production, sanitation, warehousing, maintenance and logistics at two facilities critical to Wisconsin’s dairy supply chain.
Under the new contracts, workers will receive wage increases of more than 20% over four years, higher night shift premiums and boot allowances, improved health care, expanded benefits, and a new pay structure that recognizes maintenance skills and certifications.
Workers pushed for strong protections amid ongoing uncertainty around plant ownership and long-term job security. As part of the agreements, members secured strong successor language to ensure jobs, wages and benefits are protected if the facilities are sold to another company.
Culver’s Thank You Farmers Project hits $8 million donation milestone
When Culver’s launched its Thank You Farmers Project in 2013, the goal was simple: support the agricultural community and show gratitude to the farmers who feed us. That mission has always included uplifting agricultural education and supporting the caretakers of our land to ensure a viable food supply for years to come. Today, Culver’s is proud to celebrate a record milestone: $8 million in total donations since the program’s inception.
In 2025 alone, thanks to the generosity of guests and local fundraising efforts, more than $1.5 million was raised to benefit the future of agriculture. Culver’s remains committed to strengthening farming for future generations through meaningful partnerships and active community involvement.
Some of the ways that Culver’s and its communities have supported the Thank You Farmers Project this year include:
- Green and Gold: Culver’s donated $1 for each rental and digital purchase of the movie Green and Gold, for a total of $100K to three agricultural organizations.
- To Farmers with Love: Hundreds of guests nominated farmers and ranchers for the 2025 “To Farmers with Love Contest,” which rewarded five winners with a $500 cash prize, a VIP Tim McGraw concert experience at the iconic Field of Dreams, Culver’s gift cards and swag.
- Scoops of Thanks Day: Guests donated over $170K in the 11th annual Scoops of Thanks Day fundraiser. The fundraiser offered guests the opportunity to get a single scoop of fresh frozen custard in exchange for a $1 donation to local FFA chapters and other agricultural education organizations.
- Concretes for a Cause: Culver’s raised more than $570K through Concretes for a Cause by donating $1 from each concrete mixer sold system-wide over a five-day period to local hunger relief initiatives.
- Culver’s FFA ambassadors: Guests nominated standout FFA members in their communities to represent Culver’s as FFA ambassadors and earn prizes for their local chapter. Ten ambassadors earned up to $2,500 to fund learning experiences by participating in agriculture advocacy events in partnership with Culver’s.
Processing updates
- Hiland Dairy’s east Texas plant is 70% complete and on track to begin manufacturing products in April 2026. The plant in Tyler, Texas, is expanding by 96,000 square feet and adding automated packaging technology, four new silos and a storage area, allowing the plant to quadruple its output to more than 1 million gallons of milk per week.
- The Michigan Milk Producers Association (MMPA) announced its acquisition of the Leprino Foods’ plant located in Remus, Michigan, and the introduction of cottage cheese production to MMPA’s product mix. In addition to this acquisition, MMPA is expanding ultrafiltered milk production capabilities at its Ovid, Michigan, facility. This enhancement adds 3 million pounds of daily processing capacity to the facility and builds on MMPA’s existing ultrafiltered milk capacity at Constantine, Michigan.
