According to Statistics Austria, the Austrians consumed 76 kilograms of milk, yoghurt and sour milk drinks in 2023, plus 23.6 kilograms of cheese and 7.9 kilograms of upper and cream. Upper Austria plays a leading role in milk production: around a third of the milk produced in Austria comes from our state. 146,153 dairy cows are in the domestic stables: In the 20-year comparison, this means a slight decline of four percent. The development among dairy farms is different: their number has decreased by around 60 percent to 5260 since 2005. Many small businesses have stopped, existing companies have grown. Automation is progressing: 836 milking robots are in use in Upper Austria.
“Structural change continues. In 2024, the number of dairy farms fell by 5.8 percent in the year,” says Franz Waldenberger, President of the Upper Austria Chamber of Agriculture. Among other things, the reasons include the high work in the courtyards and the generation change. The price for a kilogram of quality milk, which the producers received from the dairies last year, was an average of 48.19 cents and thus an average of 2.9 percent lower than 2023. The basic price for milk with quality surcharges, such as hay milk or biom milk, is also higher here, and a lower price was paid in the year. “At the end of the year there was an increase to around 53 cents per kilogram. At this level, the price also leveled off in the first quarter,” says Waldenberger. The first dairies had increased the price in May at 55 cents net per kilogram, which was also due to a good international demand for fat. Nevertheless, the delivered amount does not increase. In this context, Waldenberger also referred to the difficult situation in the organic area: the demand is increasing, but the incentives for organic producers are currently too low because the organic surcharges would not be sufficiently removed.
Self -supply level of 111 percent
The level of self -supply with dairy products in Austria is 111 percent. Products worth 1.78 billion euros were exported last year, goods worth 1.17 billion euros were imported. As reported, the new seal of approval “AMA Tierhalt Plus” complements the “AMA Seal”, these products have been found in the supermarket shelves since the previous year. A special focus is on animal welfare. This is accompanied by stricter posture guidelines for farmers, for example in terms of spout and animal health monitoring. The main reason for the introduction was the pressure of German trading groups: they demand higher animal welfare standards. With a share of around 50 percent, Germany is the most important export market for domestic dairies. The initial excitement has laid out that a large part of the producers have switched to the new posture standards, says Chamber Director Karl Dietachmair. The farmers would meet high standards, the costs would have to be covered accordingly. Ten million euros in animal welfare bonuses were released to farmers last year. According to Waldenberger, the producers also play a crucial role: “A production order is also associated with every grip on the shelf.”
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Image: LKOÖ
Source: Nachrichten
