US dairy exports continue strong growth in April

US dairy exports delivered strong results in April compared with the same month in 2025, despite declines in several product categories. Exports of WPC80/WPI fell by 21.92%, while casein declined sharply by 38.78% and caseinates by 57.62%. Infant formula exports decreased by 7.44%, while condensed milk exports were down 15.17%.Overall, April exports increased by 17.07%, equivalent to an additional 231 million kilo of liquid milk equivalent (LME). US dairy exports - April Product 2025 2026 ∆ ∆% SMP 51,135 56,369 5,234 10.24% WMP 2,101 2,954 853 40.60% Whey 15,597 26,605 11,008 70.58% Dairy blends/ mpc's 4,164 3,190 -974 -23.39% Mod. Whey 11,260 15,006 3,746 33.27% WPC < 80% 9,020 10,185 1,165 12.92% WPC80/WPI's 8,671 6,770 -1,901 -21.92% Casein 508 311 -197 -38.78% Caseinates 453 192 -261 -57.62% Lactose 34,325 31,755 -2,570 -7.49% I/F 1,721 1,593 -128 -7.44% Cheese 49,578 64,410 14,832 29.92% Butter 4,772 9,758 4,986 104.48% AMF 3,733 5,043 1,310 35.09% Cream 3,751 3,834 83 2.21% Fermented 5,741 6,504 763 13.29% Condensed 2,366 2,007 -359 -15.17% Milk 10,317 11,706 1,389 13.46% Year-to-date (YTD) export volumes through April were 12.80% higher than during the same period in 2025, representing an increase of 705 million kilo of LME. Export growth was partially constrained by declines in several key categories, most notably dairy blends and high-protein products such as WPC <80, WPC80/WPI, casein, and caseinates. However, strong gains in other dairy product categories more than offset these reductions, supporting overall export growth. US dairy exports - YTD April Product 2025 2026 ∆ ∆% SMP 211,037 224,049 13,012 6.17% WMP 8,639 13,851 5,212 60.33% Whey 64,645 92,637 27,992 43.30% Dairy blends/ mpc's 17,707 15,550 -2,157 -12.18% Mod. Whey 59,623 66,219 6,596 11.06% WPC < 80% 40,939 36,010 -4,929 -12.04% WPC80/WPI's 31,961 24,616 -7,345 -22.98% Casein 2,315 1,074 -1,241 -53.61% Caseinates 1,882 1,078 -804 -42.72% Lactose 129,950 131,072 1,122 0.86% I/F 9,038 5,588 -3,450 -38.17% Cheese 191,252 238,948 47,696 24.94% Butter 19,426 40,544 21,118 108.71% AMF 13,059 20,543 7,484 57.31% Cream 12,185 14,997 2,812 23.08% Fermented 21,983 27,950 5,967 27.14% Condensed 7,631 9,073 1,442 18.90% Milk 35,363 40,823 5,460 15.44% As in March, US dairy imports continued to increase year over year in April, rising by 6.69%, or 23 million kilo of LME, compared with the same month last year. US dairy imports - April Product 2025 2026 ∆ ∆% SMP 218 365 147 67.43% WMP 3,123 2,094 -1,029 -32.96% Whey 1,770 3,186 1,416 80.00% WPC <80% 2,007 1,902 -105 -5.23% WPC80/WPI's 2,726 981 -1,745 -64.01% MPC 5,685 4,509 -1,176 -20.69% Casein 2,120 1,826 -294 -13.87% Caseinates 2,037 1,736 -301 -14.78% Lactose 394 226 -168 -42.64% I/F 4,458 4,550 92 2.05% Cheese 17,164 17,151 -13 -0.08% Butter 4,512 10,041 5,529 122.54% AMF 1,843 873 -970 -52.63% Cream 4,332 7,780 3,448 79.59% Condensed 3,581 3,372 -209 -5.84% Yoghurt/Sour cream/Fermented 5,413 6,787 1,374 25.39% Milk 1,990 1,760 -230 -11.56% Despite this increase in April, YTD import volumes through April remained 6.67% below the previous year's level, equivalent to a decline of 89 million kilo of LME. US dairy imports - YTD April Product 2025 2026 ∆ ∆% SMP 940 1,608 668 71.06% WMP 10,377 8,035 -2,342 -22.57% Whey 6,933 7,801 868 12.52% WPC <80% 8,184 8,955 771 9.42% WPC80/WPI's 6,779 4,267 -2,512 -37.06% MPC 21,033 17,720 -3,313 -15.75% Casein 9,449 7,224 -2,225 -23.55% Caseinates 6,196 6,764 568 9.17% Lactose 1,109 880 -229 -20.65% I/F 23,134 15,550 -7,584 -32.78% Cheese 70,843 61,818 -9,025 -12.74% Butter 24,620 29,517 4,897 19.89% AMF 5,934 1,940 -3,994 -67.31% Cream 15,746 22,403 6,657 42.28% Condensed 16,256 17,097 841 5.17% Yoghurt/Sour cream/Fermented 19,965 25,566 5,601 28.05% Milk 9,743 7,461 -2,282 -23.42% Lower imports were recorded across multiple categories, including whole milk powder, whey, WPC80/WPI, MPC, casein, lactose, infant formula, cheese, AMF, and milk.However, export growth has done little to absorb the increase in milk production. Through April, US milk production was up by 1.026 billion kilo compared with the same period last year. Milk production in the US Product 2025 2026 ∆ ∆% January 8,706,000,000 9,015,000,000 309,000,000 3.55% February 8,050,000,000 8,284,000,000 234,000,000 2.91% March 9,038,888,888 9,282,000,000 243,111,112 2.69% April 8,814,000,000 9,054,000,000 240,000,000 2.72% Total 34,608,888,888 35,635,000,000 1,026,111,112 2.96% Based on the combined effects of higher exports, lower imports, and increased milk production, domestic consumption is estimated to have declined by 366 million kilo of LME during the first four months of the year. This represents a decrease of 1.03% relative to YTD April milk production. Overall, the US dairy sector has succeeded in exporting nearly 69% of the additional milk production, supported by significantly lower dairy import volumes.