Organic milk producers in Germany have received an average price of 55.55c/kg in the accounting year 2023/24, which left producers with a cost shortfall of 19%, according to German producer organisation MEG Milk Board.
Latest production cost and producer price calculations for organic milk in Germany show that producers only managed to cover 81% of their costs. During the academic year 2023/24, the cost of production amounted to 68.53c/kg.
According to the European Milk Board (EMB), organic milk producers in Germany received an average price of 67.72c/kg. This price consists of 55.55c/kg in milk price and 12.17c/kg in the form of subsidies.
However, the EMB said that due to farming inputs and general operating costs amounting to 54.25c/kg post deduction of income from cattle sales, the “real income” for organic milk producers was 13.47c/kg.
That is just 51% of the income that would be “appropriate” based on applicable collective agreements, according to the EMB, which said this was calculated based on an average hourly wage of about €28, including employer contributions.
The data on organic milk production costs in Germany is compiled by the Bureau for Rural Sociology and Agriculture (BAL), which was commissioned by the EMB, the German dairy farmers’ association BDM and the MEG Milk Board.
Organic milk in Germany
The Milk Marker Index for organic milk (Bio-MMI) illustrates the evolution of costs for organic milk production. At an index of 107 in 2023/24 and 2022/23, the costs for German organic producers remain 7 points higher than in 2020/21.
In comparison, the Bio-MII for organic milk in the accounting year 2017/18Â was 95, which means that costs increased by 12Â index points in this period, MEG Milk Board data show.
The EMB said “in light of these facts, the slogan ‘socially and economically sustainable’ does not hold true in the case of organic milk production”.
The board advocates for EU legislation that obliges prices to be above cost, and for a crisis instrument anchored in legislation to counteract the “chronic” cost shortfall in the dairy sector.
