Dairy farms (MDFs) increased raw milk production volumes amid an unstable situation in the dairy market. This may contribute to an increase in surplus raw milk in the domestic market and complicate the sale of finished products, according to Georghii Kukhaleishvili, an analyst at the Association of Milk Producers.
According to preliminary data from the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, in March 2025, farms of all categories produced 556 thousand tons of raw milk, which is 117 thousand tons more (+27%) compared to February 2025, but 20 thousand tons less (-4%) compared to March 2024. In January-March 2025, milk yield in Ukraine amounted to 1.44 million tons, which is 53 thousand tons (-4%) less than in the same period last year. In March 2025, the share of enterprises in raw milk production was 49%, and households – 51%.
Enterprises produced 272 thousand tons of raw milk in March 2025, which is 33 thousand tons more (+14%) compared to February 2025 and 16 thousand tons more (+6%) compared to March 2024. In January-March 2025, MDFs produced 771 thousand tons of raw milk, which is 37 thousand tons (+5%) more than in the same period last year.
In households, milk yield in March 2025 amounted to 284 thousand tons, which is 84 thousand tons more (+42%) compared to February 2025, but 37 thousand tons less (-11%) compared to March 2024. In January-March 2025, the household sector produced 676 thousand tons of raw milk, which is 90 thousand tons (-12%) less than in the same period last year.
Georghii Kukhaleishvili notes that in the first quarter of 2025, the number of regions where dairy farms (MDFs) increased raw milk production grew. Among the new leaders in production volume are Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, and Zhytomyr Oblasts. However, the increase in milk yield in the industrial sector amid an unstable situation in the market for finished dairy products, in the global dairy market, and unstable purchase price dynamics is not entirely beneficial for the dairy industry.
Today, the volume of dairy production in Ukraine is outpacing its sales volume. A decrease in demand for dairy products is observed in the domestic market due to the intensification of missile and bomb strikes by Russian occupiers on million-plus cities and the outflow of their residents abroad. Although, dairy processing enterprises strive to promote the recovery of demand for dairy products from the population through discounts and promotional offers in retail chains.
A threat to the development of the industry is also the further increase in cheese imports; at the current import rates, the share of imported cheese in the Ukrainian market may reach 80% by the end of 2025, which will force domestic cheese factories to stop operating, and the situation with surplus milk may worsen.
Another challenge for the Ukrainian dairy industry is the potential threat of the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, outbreaks of which have been recorded in Hungary and Slovakia. The spread of the disease creates risks of increased culling of infected livestock and the introduction of quarantine restrictions on farms, as well as a ban on the export of dairy products from Ukraine.
The most significant increases in milk production at agricultural enterprises were recorded in Zakarpattia Oblast (+50%), Lviv Oblast (+23%), Khmelnytskyi Oblast (+19%), Mykolaiv Oblast (+18%), Chernivtsi Oblast (+15%), Ternopil Oblast (+12%), Rivne Oblast (+7%), Zhytomyr Oblast (+6%), Poltava Oblast (+6%), Cherkasy Oblast (+4%), and Kharkiv Oblast (+2%) compared to the same period last year.
In January-March 2025, about 56% of raw milk was produced by agricultural enterprises in the following oblasts: Poltava Oblast – 119 thousand tons; Cherkasy Oblast – 95.8 thousand tons; Khmelnytskyi Oblast – 74.4 thousand tons; Chernihiv Oblast – 70.7 thousand tons; Vinnytsia Oblast – 69.5 thousand tons.
Regarding beef production, according to preliminary estimates from the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, in March 2025, cattle slaughter volumes amounted to 20.1 thousand tons, which is 10 thousand tons more (+97%) compared to February 2025 and 2.3 thousand tons less (-10%) compared to March 2024. In January-March 2025, slaughter volumes in Ukraine amounted to 44 thousand tons, which is 3 thousand tons (-7%) less than in the same period last year. In March 2025, enterprises produced 33% of beef from the total slaughter volume, and households – 67%.
According to preliminary data from the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, in March 2025, cattle slaughter volumes at enterprises amounted to 6.6 thousand tons, which is 400 tons more (+6%) than in February 2025, but 300 tons less (-4%) than in March 2024. In January-March 2025, slaughter volumes at agricultural enterprises amounted to 13.3 thousand tons, which is 300 tons (+2%) more than in the same period last year.
In households, cattle slaughter volumes in March 2025 amounted to 4 thousand tons, which is 3 thousand tons less (-40%) compared to February 2025 and 1 thousand tons less (-13%) compared to February 2024. In January-March 2025, slaughter volumes in households amounted to 19.9 thousand tons, which corresponds to the figures of the same period last year.
Total slaughter volumes of farm animals, not only cattle but also pigs, sheep, and poultry, in January-March 2025 amounted to 749.4 thousand tons, which is 3% less than in the same period last year.
According to preliminary data, in March 2025, the most significant increases in slaughter volumes at agricultural enterprises were recorded in Zakarpattia Oblast (+214%), Zaporizhzhia Oblast (+71%), Mykolaiv Oblast (+41%), Kharkiv Oblast (+42%), Chernivtsi Oblast (+32%), Rivne Oblast (+23%), Kirovohrad Oblast (+18%), Lviv Oblast (+19%), Odesa Oblast (+15%), Khmelnytskyi Oblast (+15%), Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast (+11%), Ternopil Oblast (+5%), and Chernihiv Oblast (+5%) compared to the same period last year.
The largest volumes of animals sent for slaughter at agricultural enterprises were in the following oblasts: Vinnytsia Oblast – 155.4 thousand tons; Cherkasy Oblast – 102.6 thousand tons; Dnipropetrovsk Oblast – 87.9 thousand tons; Lviv Oblast – 44.8 thousand tons; Kyiv Oblast – 31.4 thousand tons.