Of the top five dairy exporters, New Zealand is expected to set the pace, expanding 891,000 metric tons. If realized, that 5 percent growth would be the equivalent of all 1.96 billion pounds of milk produced in South Dakota during 2012 (South Dakota ranks 20th among all U.S. states). Here's one more kicker. Based on USDA projections, the agency believes the growth in Kiwi milk output would be higher than all 28 nations that are counted among the European Union.
What else did the forecast project among the world's leading dairy exporters?
- Most of New Zealand's growth will be propelled by the addition of 68,000 cows, bringing the national herd up to 5.1 million head in 2014. Milk per cow should improve by 3 percent.
- For the second-place European Union, milk production is expected to grow by 1 percent in 2014. Most of that growth will be due to gains in productivity per cow.
- In the U.S., strong dairy product prices and lower feed costs are expected to cause milk production to grow by 1.2 percent. Cow numbers are forecasted to expand by 30,000 head and milk per cow should move up by 1 percent.
- Australian milk production is expected to be down 2 percent when final 2013 numbers get reported. Moving forward, milk production should expand 3 percent in 2014, driven mainly by growth in herd size and improved margins. Australia ranks fourth in world dairy exports.
- Milk production is expected to grow by 4 percent for the fifth-rank dairy exporter, Argentina. Most of the gains will be made by improved milk per cow, as the herd size should be rather flat.
To read the entire Dairy: World Markets and Trade report, go to http://on.hoards.com/DWMTR.
