Uruguay reports improved milk deliveries

South American country Uruguay reported milk deliveries of around 2,041 million liters in 2013, which amounted to a 5.4% increase from 2012. The forecast for 2014 is 2,300 million liters. The report, released by the Ministerio de Ganadería, Agricultura y Pesca Oficina de Programación y Política Agropecuaria in Paraguay, also notes that exports improved by 17% over 2012, amounting to $914.7 million (€656.8m). The main export markets are Venezuela and Brazil, which make up 60% of total exports. China has increasingly been an importer of Uruguayan dairy – from around 2% in 2011 and 2012, this country’s share has now surpassed 12% of Uruguay’s total exports.

Meanwhile, farmgate prices have improved by 11% in 2013 against 2012, and now average $0.42 per litre. However the average milk cost per litre is $0.34, which is a 9% increase over 2012’s numbers.