New Zealand is milking fewer cows again, but exporting more

New Zealand's dairy herd will shrink again in 2023. From 5.93 million dairy cows to 5.83 million. In 2021 there were still 6.19 million. Most cows are slaughtered annually between March and June. During that period, 9.2 percent more animals were slaughtered in 2023 than in the same period a year earlier. Over the remaining months there was a decline of 6.4 percent. Despite there being fewer cows, New Zealand exports increased. Whole milk powder is the most important export product. Compared to 2022, 3.6 percent more whole milk powder was sold outside the country's borders in 2023. The share of China and Indonesia in exports decreased, while demand from Algeria and the United Arab Emirates increased, reports the German market information agency AMI. For skimmed milk powder, the percentage increase was even greater at 26.7. Almost all major buyers requested more skimmed milk powder in 2023 than in 2022. In the cumulative period from January to December, cheese recorded an export ...