Milk output falls to lowest level since 1994/95

Milk production during August fell to the lowest level since the deregulation of the milk market in 1994/95, figures from the Rural Payments Agency revealed. Total monthly output was 1,056.1m litres, some 4.3% below the three-year average and 5.3% down on July.

DairyCo said the seasonal decline in production between July and August was normally nearer 3-4% and this year’s dramatic fall was largely due to the poor weather.

Cumulative production stands at 5,663.6m litres, some 2% below the 2007/08 milk year, when UK production totalled 13.2bn litres, almost 1bn below its quota limit.