Browse Data and Analysis

South Africa’s dairy industry is likely to grow in the future due to improving economic factors, despite suffering from many weather and disease related challenges in the past five years. This growth may provide opportunities for dairy genetics exporters.

Kenya's dairy sector is one of the most advanced in East Africa, and the second largest in Africa in terms of herd size. The industry remains an important part of the Kenyan agricultural economy, contributing 17 percent to agricultural GDP and 3.8 percent of the total national GDP. The sector is still largely informal, with only 15 percent of total milk processed in 2023.

In 2024, Argentina's dairy production faced significant challenges, primarily due to severe weather and economic issues which led to a projected 7 percent decline in milk output, estimated at 10,708 metric tons (MT).

The Kenyan dairy and beef sectors are important drivers of the country’s economic growth, yet both sectors are unable to meet domestic demand. The challenges facing Kenya’s dairy and beef sectors present opportunities for U.S. technical capacity building in research, knowledge, and technology transfer.

While the United States holds a 5-year average of less than 1 percent market share ($20.7 million in 2023 exports), Senegal has a growing food manufacturing industry that seeks cost-competitive ingredients and is expanding its exports to neighboring countries.

Colombia is the largest South American market for U.S. agricultural products and the seventh-largest market for U.S. food and beverage exports globally. Since the U.S. – Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (CTPA) was implemented in 2012, U.S. agricultural exports have grown by more than 235 percent to a record $3.7 billion in 2023.

On March 14, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) officially noted the lifting of restrictions on sourcing foreign exchange to import dairy products. Previously, only six designated companies could source foreign exchange from the government to import dairy products.

Due to the severe drought, Post forecasts a slight decrease in dairy output, estimating a decline of just over one percent to 11,441,000 MT in volume by the end of 2023 compared to 2022. Projections for 2024 are complex as several factors could lead to a significant drop in production, particularly during the first half of the year.

2022 Argentine dairy production is projected at the same level with respect to 2021 or with a drop of less than one percent year-on-year to 11.495,000 MT, due to abnormally dry and warm weather during the first half of the year which is expected to continue until the end of the year. Post forecasts Whole Milk Powder (WMP) production to rise to 245,000 MT in a recessionary domestic market with stable production compared to 2021, which would result in a higher export balance.

Estimated at a Retail Sale Price (RSP) value of about $350 million in 2021, Ghana’s dairy market presents bright prospects for suppliers of fat filled milk powder (FFMP) despite the recent growth in demand for non-dairy creamers due to their health and wellness tag.

The prevailing extraordinary factors make it difficult to estimate exports for the rest of the year and the coming year. Other factors have been added to the recurrent volatility of the international dairy market.