Ireland's whole milk powder shipments to the EU jump 166.2% to 9,283 tonnes

Ireland's shipments of whole milk powder (WMP) to other European Union member states reached 9,283 tonnes in January-May 2026, up 166.2% year on year, according to trade data compiled by DCA Market Intelligence and reported by dairynews.today.

The Irish increase ran far ahead of the wider bloc. Intra-EU movements of whole milk powder rose 2.9% to 91,997 tonnes over the same five months, while exports from the EU to destinations outside the bloc grew 2.2% to 78,051 tonnes. Germany contributed strongly to that external expansion.

Irish volumes outpace a flat intra-EU market

At 9,283 tonnes, Ireland supplied roughly a tenth of all intra-EU whole milk powder movements in the first five months of the year, on volumes that were less than half that size twelve months earlier. dairynews.today reported that the shift took place as European processors and food manufacturers absorbed more powder inside the bloc rather than sending it to third markets.

The redistribution was not driven by additional Irish milk. Irish collections were broadly stable at 5.80 million tonnes through July, down 0.4% from the previous year. Supply growth was concentrated on the continent: German collections rose 6.4% to 20.16 million tonnes, French volumes grew 2.2% to 14.66 million tonnes, and output increased 4.5% in the Netherlands and 3.1% in Poland.

Powder benchmarks at their highest since 2022

The trade shift coincided with a sharp rise in European dairy-powder prices. By early September:

• Food-grade skimmed milk powder was quoted at 3,205 euros per tonne, 9.6% above the previous month and 44.4% higher than a year earlier.
• Feed-grade skimmed milk powder reached 3,225 euros per tonne, up 41.1% year on year.
• Food-grade sweet whey powder rose 79% annually, and feed-grade sweet whey powder gained 94.4%.
• Lactose prices increased 59%.

Those benchmarks are the highest since 2022, according to the report. Whole milk powder was the exception: prices remained slightly below their level of a year earlier, even as European quotations moved closer to those of international competitors.

Processors tilt toward skimmed milk powder

European processors directed more raw milk into skimmed milk powder. EU output of the product rose 11.7% in the first half of 2026 to 865,019 tonnes, with Irish production up 19.4%. Intra-EU shipments of skimmed milk powder climbed 13.5% to 286,920 tonnes, and exports outside the bloc grew 10.6% to 367,628 tonnes. Belgium, Germany and France supplied the major volumes to non-EU markets.

Production of other milk and cream powders in the EU fell 3.4% over the same period, underlining how far the processing mix has moved towards skimmed milk powder and, in Ireland's case, towards whole milk powder placed within the single market.

What it means for buyers and traders

For importers outside Europe, the combination matters: intra-EU demand is absorbing a larger share of the bloc's powder output, while EU offers have converged with international price levels. Extra-EU flows are still growing - 2.2% for whole milk powder and 10.6% for skimmed milk powder - but the expansion is concentrated among a small group of suppliers led by Germany, Belgium and France.

For Irish processors, the binding constraint is raw material. With collections at 5.80 million tonnes and marginally below last year, further growth in powder shipments depends on the product mix and on prices holding near four-year highs, rather than on additional milk volume.