EU milk production has continued its upward trajectory, reinforcing a consistent growth pattern across the decade to 2024. According to Eurostat, farms across the European Union produced 161.8 million tonnes of raw milk last year, an increase of 0.9 million tonnes on 2023 and 12.1 million tonnes more than in 2014. This sustained rise indicates a stable and well-integrated dairy sector, supported by strong processing capacity and resilient market demand.
Milk Allocation Reflects Strong Processing Efficiency
Of the total milk produced in 2024, 150.8 million tonnes were delivered to dairies. These volumes were channelled into high-value dairy product categories such as cheese, butter and fermented products, underscoring the sector’s strategic focus on added-value processing rather than commodity milk.
Cheese remained the largest product category. Dairies utilised 59.9 million tonnes of whole milk and 17.0 million tonnes of skimmed milk to produce 10.8 million tonnes of cheese. Butter production continued to show strong demand as well, requiring 44.2 million tonnes of whole milk to yield 2.3 million tonnes of butter. These figures highlight the continued dominance of cheese and butter in the EU’s dairy processing portfolio.
Germany Maintains Its Position as Europe’s Dairy Powerhouse
Germany reinforced its position as the EU’s leading dairy producer across several major product categories, accounting for 18.8% of all drinking milk, 27.1% of fermented milk products, 20.6% of butter and 22.5% of cheese. These substantial shares highlight the country’s strong industrial base, advanced processing capacity and its dominant influence across both domestic and export-focused dairy markets.
Strong Output Across Other Key EU Producers
Spain was the EU’s second-largest producer of drinking milk, contributing 15.2% of the total, followed by France at 12.7%. The Netherlands ranked second in fermented milk products with 16.8%, reflecting its strong culture of value-added dairy production, while Poland followed with 10.4%.
France continued to play a critical role in the European dairy landscape, delivering 17.2% of the EU’s butter production and 17.8% of cheese output. Ireland also maintained a significant position, particularly in butter, accounting for 14.8% of EU production, reflecting its pasture-based dairy model and strong export focus.
A Stable, Integrated and Competitive Dairy Sector
The steady expansion in milk production, coupled with robust cheese and butter output, demonstrates the EU dairy sector’s capacity to balance farm-level productivity with efficient processing and strong market alignment. As the industry continues to navigate sustainability demands, evolving consumer trends and global trade pressures, this decade-long growth highlights the structural strength and adaptability of the European dairy value chain.
