January 9, 2004

Australian Milk Production Down A Billion Litres

Australian milk production fell by nearly a billion litres as a result of drought, statistics from Dairy Australia shows.

"There are now 2.1 million dairy cows left in Australia, but the drought has left them milking less. On average annual production per head fell by 415 litres. The exit of dairy farmers from the sector also continues. In 2002/2003 400 chose to leave, and 28-thousand dairy cows were sold out of the industry. States that reported the most dramatic drop in milk production were Tasmania and Victoria, while South Australia and Western Australia reported a slight increase. But Dairy Australia's John McKew says that hasn't been enough to lift national milk production, down 8.4 per cent."

"That's about 945 million litres of milk in lost production last year, pretty much as a result of the drought."