The comments were made during the recent round of milk price step-ups announced last month.
MG lifted prices 10c/kg fat and 20c/kg protein – its second of the season – taking their weighted average price to $5.22/kg MS, while Fonterra raised their prices by 8c/kg fat and 20c/kg protein.
Fonterra GM Milk Supply Heather Stacy said the outlook for the rest of the season was good.
Warrnambool Cheese and Butter (WCB) announced their second milk price step-up of the current season –8c/kg fat and 20c/kg protein – with another milk price review for suppliers due in April.
Burra Foods has announced a second step-up of 10c /kg milkfat and 25c /kg protein – lifting their average annual price to over $5.05/kg MS.
Burra also said its key markets of Japan, South East Asia and the Middle East were performing well and reflecting firm demand.
Tatura Milk has announced a loyalty payment for the first half of the season of 8c/kg fat and 20c/kg protein, with a further milk price increase for the months of February to June of 8c/kg fat and 20c/kg protein.
UDP has raised its price by 20c/kg fat and 40c/kg protein lifting its season average weighted price to $5-42 /kg MS.
Longwarry Food Park has lifted its milk price by 7c/kg for fat and 17c/kg for protein.
The news was not so good for northern suppliers of Parmalat, which renegotiated the contracts of all its dairy farmers in south-east Queensland and northern NSW.
All contracts between Parmalat and its suppliers were due to expire at the end of 2012. However the company contacted farmers late last year to inform them they wanted to bring forward renegotiation talks by one year.
Farmers can now continue with their current contract conditions at the same price per litre until the end of 2012 with no guarantee that another contract will be offered, or they could sign a new three-year contract effective from January 1 that would see them receive 3c per litre less than the current rate.
Some farmers are expected to lose $70,000 a year on the new contracts.
Parmalat has said the new contracts provided continued certainty of price and volume until 2014.
