WASHINGTON: The latest data from the EU milk market observatory shows strong export growth for EU butter and cheese to its main markets. Year-on-year cheese exports from the 28 EU member states increased in January 2016 for all the top 10 export destinations, with the exception of Switzerland and South Korea. With trade to Russia blocked since 2014, the US has assumed the position as the EU’s largest market for cheese.
Cheese exports to the US continue to surge, increasing by 7% in January compared with last year. Japan is the EU’s second-largest market for cheese, with exports increasing 10% in January. The US is also the EU’s largest export market for butter. Riding on the back of shifting consumer trends around butter, the EU was able to more than double its butter exports to the US in 2015 to over 17,000t.
The strong growth looks likely to continue in 2016, with butter exports to the US increasing 46% in January 2016 compared with the same month a year earlier. Saudi Arabia was the EU’s second-largest market for butter in 2015 but the depressed oil market appears to be affecting spending power in the gulf state, with January 2016 butter imports down 33%.
In New Zealand, exports of cheese increased 20% for January 2016, although at a lower price point than this time last year. Exports of both milk powders, which account for the bulk of New Zealand dairy exports, both showed improvement in January, with SMP exports up 14% and WMP exports up 6%.
