Markets & Management

2020 was certainly a year for the record books. Unfortunately, not all the records are things we want to remember. Record volatility in Class III and Class IV led to record low producer price  differentials (PPD) in the Mideast and Northeast Milk Marketing Orders, the two orders found in Pennsylvania. In July, the Mideast order hit a low of -$8.02 per cwt while the Northeast hit a low of -$5.46 per cwt. December PPDs returned to somewhat normal amounts at $1.18 and $1.54, respectively. However, not all 2020 dairy news was bad. Block cheddar cheese price set a record high, settling at over $3.00 per pound at one point before moderating and dropping along with Class III price later in the year. Retail sales of fluid milk grew year-over-year for the first time in recent history, showing a 2% improvement over 2019. A large reason why milk prices did not drop any further was dairy exports. Read More