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After a huge rise in the demand for animal proteins in China and the Middle East, there is said to be a drought in the dairy industry. The consequence: higher prices. In the UK, the price of cream has risen 23 per cent this past year, while Australia has experienced a huge 60 per cent price increase for skimmed milk powder in just six months. Butter has become much more expensive, now costing $2,550 per tonne as opposed to $1,880 per tonne. The situation is said to be causing havoc, despite the fact that industry specialists have known about the predicament for a year.

A combination of factors is said to be responsible for the drought, such as population growth, a change in diets and wealthier lifestyles, which have all increased the demand for milk products. However, this demand didn’t come all at once, like a bolt out of the blue: The steady increase in demand should surely have prepared professionals in the industry, prompting them to be proactive by means of market research, preparation, planning, the opening of new dairy farms, etc. It is absurd that the government’s supplies of milk powder and butter are now gone and there are still no means to an end.

Specialists are now warning of the potentially serious consequences this drought could have worldwide, since the majority of milk powder stock is sold to poorer countries.

There need to be some lessons learned here.