This year’s IFCN Dairy Conference focused on the next generation of dairy farmers and dairy farming systems. IFCN’s first hybrid event recorded over 500 registrations and brought people from the dairy sector together in Kiel, Germany.

Under current dairy market conditions, a shrinking global milk supply is meeting steadily increasing demand, and farm profitability is under increasing pressure with milk and feed prices at unprecedented levels.

The war in Ukraine is bringing suffering to the lives of the country’s people with its destructive effects. The political and economic impact is not a priority in such a situation. Nevertheless, at IFCN we have been analyzing what the consequences could be, focusing on the dairy sector.

Dairy farmers have faced rising input costs since the end of 2020. Based on an analysis of typical farm types in more than 50 countries, IFCN finds that the main cost item, accounting for 30% to 70% of the cost of milk production, is precisely feed.

The global economy was under pressure during the pandemic. Value chains were disrupted and uncertainty dominated many sectors. Read how the dairy sector performed during this period and what will be important in 2022.

The impact on farm economics and how it shaped the changes in the farm structure, as well as what are the other main drivers for dairy in 2022.

The Top 20 dairy processors are responsible for some 40% of the world’s raw milk pool that is being processed in factories. These companies and cooperatives have increased their milk processing by 50 million tons during the past 10 years, which is half of the US’ annual production

IFCN Dairy Forum brought together people from 85 countries with different backgrounds to discuss greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from dairy with a special focus on emerging countries.

What are the latest & future developments in the dairy market? Where is the starting point for the dairy in the future and its sustainability? What are the key drivers of the milk price?

The two-day event was a great success and brought together more than 700 dairy experts from 72 countries and 207 companies and institutions. While there are still obstacles to overcome on the path to transforming the dairy sector into its digital future, participants and panellists agree that the benefits clearly prevail.

How tight is the connection between changes in the farm structure and dairy farm economics? Is milk supply being affected by current milk and feed price developments? Where is the starting point for the dairy in the future and its sustainability?