Philippine dairy imports surged by 24.7%
-
Philippine dairy imports surged by 24.7% in the first nine months of 2024 to 2.71 million metric tons, according to the National Dairy Authority
-
Imports accounted for 99.1% of the country’s total milk supply, the agency said
-
Dairy imports’ value grew by 3.5% to P61.09 billion while the value of local milk production increased by 20.8% to P1.31 billion
-
Exported dairy products declined by 13.5% to 31 million liters
Imports continued to dominate the market, contributing 99.1% of the country’s total milk supply, the agency said.
Other powdered milk imports rose by 16%, and ready-to-drink liquid milk imports climbed by 3.3% for the first three quarters of the year.
In monetary terms, local milk production grew 20.8% to P1.31 billion, while dairy imports’ value grew by 3.5% to P61.09 billion. Despite efforts to bolster local production, the share of domestic output in the total milk supply slightly declined to 0.9% from 1% last year.
The net supply of milk products increased by 24.6% to 2,736.21 million liters, although exports dropped by 13.5% to 31 million liters.
According to the NDA data, the country’s dairy inventory rose by 59.4%, reaching 152,619 heads. This growth was led by a 3.2% increase in dairy cows and does, totaling 34,875 heads in NDA-assisted farms. Meanwhile, the livestock inventory overall declined slightly by 1.5% to 9.05 million heads.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Dairy Market Review 2024 projected world trade in dairy products reaching nearly 85 million tons (in milk equivalent) in 2024, up 0.4 percent from 2023.
“This relatively stable trade outlook is mainly driven by improved consumer demand and increased food service sales in some countries induced by the post Covid-19 recovery of tourism, the increasing spending on food consumed out of home and the overall increased demand from the hotel, restaurant and institutional sector, notably in the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Algeria, Mexico, and the United States of America,” FAO said.
The Philippines is forecast to import 2.68 million tons of milk and milk products from 2023’s estimated 2.32 million tons, an uptick of 13.9%, according to the FAO market review.
NDA said in its update, “The Philippine dairy sector demonstrated significant developments during the first three quarters of 2024, reflecting a combination of progress in local production and challenges from heavy reliance on imports.”
It added: “Overall, the Philippine dairy industry is making strides in expanding local production capacity, as evidenced by growth in dairy inventory, stakeholders, and production value.”