There are significant differences in milk prices within the EU. In May, the difference between the country with the highest milk price and the country with the lowest milk price in the European Union was no less than 30c.

Cyprus is the country with the highest milk price within the EU. In May, the milk price there stood at 66.1c, closely followed by Malta, where the milk price was 63.7c. Malta and Greece were the only two countries in the EU where the milk price in May 2026 was higher than in May 2025.

The lowest milk prices were paid in Slovakia and Lithuania, where they stood at just 36c and 36.9c respectively. The Netherlands, with a milk price of 41.8c, was slightly below the EU average of 42.6c. This average milk price is therefore 19.6 per cent lower than that of May 2025.

In most European countries, milk production rose in the first five months of this year compared with the same period last year. Belgium recorded the largest increase in percentage terms, with a rise of 8.9 per cent, followed by Austria, where milk production increased by 8.1 per cent. Growth in Germany, at 6.6 per cent, had the greatest impact on the overall European figure. However, there were also countries where milk production fell. Milk production fell most sharply in Romania, by 11 per cent, and in Estonia, by 10.3 per cent. Pan-European production rose by 3.7 per cent.