Turkey’s cow milk collection rises 2.3% in May as butter output falls 12%
Turkey’s commercial dairies collected 1,022,587 tonnes of cow milk in May 2026, up 2.3% year on year. Drinking milk, cheese, ayran and kefir production increased, while butter and clarified butter output fell 12%.
Milk collection exceeds 1 million tonnes
Turkey’s commercial dairy enterprises collected 1,022,587 tonnes of cow milk in May 2026, an increase of 2.3% from the same month of 2025, according to data from the Turkish Statistical Institute reported by Bloomberg HT. The volume was also higher than the 999,267 tonnes collected in April.
The May increase extended the sector’s modest year-to-date growth. During January-May, commercial dairies collected 4,858,029 tonnes of cow milk, 0.5% more than in the corresponding period of 2025. The difference between the monthly and cumulative growth rates indicates that the acceleration in May was stronger than the average recorded during the first five months.
Drinking milk records the fastest growth
Processors directed more raw milk into several major dairy categories. Drinking milk production rose 19.7% year on year in May to 157,453 tonnes, the strongest percentage increase among the products covered by the figures. Cow milk cheese output increased 2.4% to 72,146 tonnes, while combined ayran and kefir production grew 2% to 95,439 tonnes.
The five-month figures also showed broad growth in these categories. Drinking milk production increased 9.2% from January through May compared with the same period of 2025. Cow milk cheese output rose 2.8% to 357,882 tonnes, while ayran and kefir production advanced 8.9% to 433,952 tonnes. These gains provide domestic processors with larger volumes of liquid milk, cheese and fermented drinks, potentially affecting Turkey’s demand for imported dairy products and its capacity to supply export markets.
Butter and yogurt diverge from raw milk trend
Higher milk collection did not translate into growth across every product. Butter and clarified butter production dropped 12% year on year in May to 9,671 tonnes. Output over January-May fell 5% to 46,995 tonnes, making milk fat the clearest weak point in the production data. For buyers and traders, the decline is relevant because a smaller domestic butter supply can tighten availability even when the overall volume of collected milk is rising.
Yogurt production also declined in May, falling 1.2% from a year earlier to 120,224 tonnes. Its cumulative trend was stronger: January-May output rose 8.4% to 591,052 tonnes. The contrast suggests that the May decline did not erase the expansion recorded earlier in the year. Importers, exporters and dairy market analysts will need to track how processors allocate the growing raw milk pool, particularly between fast-growing drinking milk and weaker milk-fat products.
