Milk intake estimated at higher level than in 2015

Milk SA estimates the total milk intake in October 2016 at 309 million litres – 4,4% up on October 2015. Total intake up to the end of October is estimated at 1,7% less than during the first ten months of 2015. The outlook for the rest of 2016 remains uncertain, especially as the drought in the Eastern and Southern Cape may continue and there is also growing concern about the availability of water in the Gariep system. On the demand side, figures recently provided by Sampro show that for the year ended September 2016 sales increased as follows: UHT milk by 13,0%, pre-packaged cheese by 11,9%, maas by 14,0% and flavoured milk by 12,2%. The higher sales were achieved in spite of substantial increases in retail prices of between 7,9% and 11,9%.