MD_DA240 DA MD DA240 FLUID MILK AND CREAM REVIEW - WEST Madison, WI March 23, 2017 (REPORT 12) California milk production is up this week. The weather is currently warmer, and some dairy handlers are still recovering from the preceding rainy days. Class 1 demand is steady. Processors are managing to meet their contract needs and have enough supplies for processing needs. Alfalfa is growing well as a result of the warmer weather. Milk yield in Arizona is slightly down as temperatures get warmer than usual. Milk components are also a little down because of current weather conditions. However, contacts in some plants report that their production for the month of March is on average 1.5% higher, compared to last year. The sales into Class I are higher due to schools reopening after spring break. The demands for Class II have slightly increased as well. Overall, New Mexico farm milk output is increasing, but at a lower rate than previous weeks. Bottled milk demands are slightly higher as school districts renewed their orders. A few contacts report that Class II sales are flat to slightly higher. Class III intakes are on the down side. Some manufacturing plants are temporarily reducing their daily intakes due to expansion and repair downtime. As a result, some out-of-state plant operators increased their weekly milk intakes to help with milk processing. Pacific Northwest milk production is stable. Bottling demand is seasonally steady and there is plenty of milk available to keep manufacturing facilities operating near capacity. Water held in Washington reservoirs are below normal for this time of year. Water levels have been purposely kept low in preparation of expected above normal spring and summer runoffs. Industry contacts expect adequate supplies of water for irrigation this spring. Milk production in the mountain states of Idaho, Utah, and Colorado is coming back after a tough winter. Industry contacts in Northern Utah and Idaho say conditions are improving and milk intakes are growing. However, they add that some cows are still feeling some stress from the unusually harsh winter and it may be the next lactation before milk production recovers fully. Rivers are full, but crop ground is in good shape. With reservoirs at or above average capacity, farmers expect plenty of water for irrigation and a good start to the growing season. Condensed skim sales are flat. Some contacts report having offers at $0.65/lb in California. Availability of cream in the West is abundant. Some producers are making more butter to keep up with excess cream. Demands are steadily lower in California and cream premiums are from 0-5 cents. In Arizona, cream sales are flat this week. Cream multiples are 1.00 to 1.13. According to the DMN National Retail Report-Dairy for the week of March 17-23, the national weighted average advertised price for one gallon of milk is $2.59, up 8 cents from last week and 41 cents higher from a year ago. The weighted average regional price in the Southwest is $2.57, with a price range of $1.99-2.99. No ads were reported in the Northwest. The NASS Milk Production report noted February 2017 milk production in the 23 selected states was 15.7 billion pounds, 1.0% below the unadjusted production of a year ago. Milk cows in the 23 selected states totaled 8.69 million head, 66,000 head more than a year ago. The following table shows western states included in the report and the monthly milk production changes compared to a year ago: February 2017 Milk Production, (USDA-NASS) (Million Lb.) % Change From 1 Year Ago Arizona 410 - 0.7 California 3,122 - 5.4 Colorado 313 + 3.3 Idaho 1,095 - 2.7 New Mexico 637 + 7.8 Oregon 196 - 5.8 Utah 160 + 0.6 Washington 502 - 5.6 1100CT Florence.KoneGonzalez@ams.usda.gov (608)422-8594 Mike.Bandli@ams.usda.gov (608)557-7010 USDA/AMS/Dairy Market News, Madison, Wisconsin Dairy Market News website: http://www.ams.usda.gov/market-news/dairy Dairy Market News database portal: http://www.marketnews.usda.gov/mnp/da- home