The Milk Business

Is the flood of US investments by milk processing co-ops going to end badly? Are European co-ops struggling in a milk price/Input cost squeeze going to be able to pull through this difficult patch? And What are the key co-op fundamental principles that make the co-op structure fit milk processing? This week Jack Kennedy asks New Zealand's Mike O'Connor for answers around co-ops that seem stretched after recent milk processing investments while some private dairy companies seem to be thriving outside of the co-operative space. This week Mike O’Connor was appointed as an independent director to co-operative business New Zealand. We also hear updates from the North and South Island of New Zealand, the Netherlands and France.

Last week we were talking protein – this week we are doing a wrap on commodities, farm gate milk prices, and what supply and demand factors are driving markets across the world. We hear about production per cow targets in the Netherlands, making silage and milk in New Zealand, France recovering from the dry spell but still short on winter feed, and costs rising significantly in England and Europe for fuel, fertiliser and feed.

What’s the difference between milk protein isolates and concentrates – what’s fast and what’s slow protein, what’s the difference between plant and animal protein – what is the future of protein and will we need animals at all very soon. This week to find out more about protein Jack Kennedy talks to Andre Brodkorb from Moorepark Food Research Centre in Cork, Ireland. 
Following a barrage of questions and engagement about protein last week in follow up to our visit to Kilkenny Cheese this week we have decided to try and answer some of your questions about the difference between isolates and concentrates, whey and milk protein and what's the future for plant proteins.

In this week's episode we visited a new development called Kilkenny Cheese on the East coast of Ireland. It's a Joint Venture investment between a family run company headquartered in the Netherlands called Royal A-ware and Tirlan, an Irish co-op based in the East of Ireland. Kilkenny Cheese make soft cheeses Edam and Gouda with by products of whey and cream processed at other Tirlan locations in Ireland. We also hear from milk suppliers in New Zealand, The Netherlands, England, and Ireland.

The Mid Term elections are coming up in the US – the World Dairy Expo was on last week in Madison – the US dairy industry has been flying and continues to fly – this week we get an update on the most fascinating aspect of the global dairy business - the US dairy scene. We also chat milk suppliers from New Zealand, the Netherlands, England and Ireland.