Ahead of Monday afternoon’s USDA Milk Production report, Class III milk futures struggled once again. December futures softened 26 cents and closed at $16.38/cwt. Q1 2024 ranged from 14 – 26 cents lower and are averaging $17.08. Q2 2024 was also down 5 – 10 cents and is now at a $18.12/cwt average.
Spot product markets saw barrel cheese fall a nickel to $1.51/lb on four loads being exchanged from seller to buyer. Block cheese closed unchanged at $1.60/lb. Butter added 2.75 cents to $2.5175/lb. Whey fell three quarters of a cent to $0.4025/lb. Nonfat was unchanged at $1.1925/lb.
USDA’s Milk Production report saw production in October fall -0.5% year-over-year. The dairy cow herd remained steady after revisions to September’s data. This is the seventh straight month of stead to lower cow numbers.
