Grade A nonfat dry milk remained the shining star this week at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange after setting a record high last Friday at $2.1150 per pound. It kept climbing this week and hit $2.1825 Thursday, another record, and a whopping $1.01 per pound above a year ago.

Correcting my report from last week, the previous high was $2.11 per pound on Dec. 27, 2013, and also occurred for 20 consecutive weeks in 2007. HighGround Dairy says, “The 2026 record feels very different than those markets, as fundamentals were much different. Although production is increasing year-on-year according to Dairy Market News, spot loads are extremely difficult to find, keeping spot prices elevated. Futures remain discounted to CME spot prices, suggesting the market anticipates prices will ease as the product mix changes.”

Needless to say, these prices will keep U.S. powder on shore. StoneX broker Dave Kurzawski says the market has “boggled minds so far in 2026. The last third of a bull market is nearly impossible to forecast. But it appears as though the structural issues that helped to tighten the NFDM this year remain in place here in mid-April. The spot market trading at a significant premium to the futures markets is signaling anyone to clear inventories and bring product to market. The rub is there is no incentive to build inventories precisely at the time we need them most. Said another way, we’ve got to get to the place where the bid for powder dries up.”

Cash block Cheddar traded Thursday at $1.57 per pound, 26.50 cents below this week a year ago. It closed Friday at $1.5775. The barrels were holding at Friday’s close of $1.5750, 26.50 cents below a year ago.

Dairy Market News says milk output is strong in the Central region and spot volumes are plentiful. Class III spot prices ranged mid-week from $8-under to $2-under Class. A few cheesemakers reported downtime for maintenance this week and in the coming weeks and were offering spot milk below-Class prices. Cheese production is strong overall however, as some processors ran additional production on the weekends to work through the available volumes of milk. Domestic cheese demand was unchanged and contacts say export interest is steady to higher.

Milk production is plentiful enough in the West to keep cheese production stable and cheese manufacturing is filling contractual orders in steady fashion. But, spot load availability tightened this week. Sellers note quieter domestic sales with an industry conference taking place this week. Demand from international buyers was stronger. Contacts reported neither bearish nor bullish market tones for the week, according to DMN.

Cash butter traded Thursday at $1.7375 per pound, 60.50 cents below a year ago, and down a penny from its Friday close.

Cream production was unchanged this week in the Mid-west, according to DMN, and contacts said spot loads were becoming more available, but inventories remain somewhat snug. Spot demand from Class II and III processors was steady, but churning interest remains lighter. Butter makers continue to use cream from within their network or contract purchases to run busy schedules. Contacts report softening retail demand but food service sales are steady. Export demand is strong, as U.S. product is competitively priced. Spot purchasers say loads are available, but inventories are not excessive, according to DMN.

Western reports say milk and cream production continue to supply more than ample volumes for butter manufacturers and plant intakes are meeting expectations. Spot cream is available, but more dairy commodity manufacturers are pulling on the supply. Class II production is strong, particularly cottage cheese. Churns continue to be active seven days a week. Domestic butter demand varies from steady to strong. Demand from international buyers is strong, but transportation costs are holding some sales activity back, says DMN.

Dry whey closed Thursday at 68 cents per pound, 19.75 cents above a year ago, after closing Friday at 70.50 cents per pound.

Fluid milk sales were down again but the slippage was not as great as the month before. The USDA’s latest data showed packaged February sales at 3.360 billion pounds, off 0.4 percent from Feb. 2025, and followed a 2.3 percent drop in January.

Conventional product sales totaled 3.1 billion pounds, down 0.5 percent from a year ago. Organic sales, at 242 million, were up 0.4 percent from a year ago, and represented a typical 7.2 percent of total milk sales in the month.

Whole milk sales totaled 1.2 billion pounds, up 2.9 percent from a year ago, and up 2.2 percent for the two month period. Whole milk represented a typical 36.7 percent of total sales for the month.

Skim milk sales, at 128 million pounds, were down 10.3 percent from a year ago and year to date.

Packaged fluid sales in the 2 month period totaled 7.1 billion pounds, down 1.4 percent from 2025. Conventional product sales totaled 6.6 billion, down 1.3 percent from a year ago. Organic products, at 503 billion pounds, were down 2.7 percent, but represented 7.1 percent of total milk sales for the year so far.

The figures represent consumption in Federal market orders which account for about 92 percent of total fluid sales in the U.S. About 7.5 percent U.S. fluid sales are consumed in schools.

The USDA’s monthly Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook, issued April 15, mirrored milk price and production projections in the April 9 World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report.

It stated, “Recent data on dairy cow inventories and weaker-than-expected slaughter support an increase in the expected average number of milk cows in 2026. The dairy herd is projected to peak in the second quarter at 9.615 million head,” according to the Outlook, “And gradually decline in the second half of the year. The herd is forecast to average 9.610 million head in 2026, 40,000 more than last month’s projection. However, the 2026 forecast for milk per cow was decreased by 35 pounds to 24,485 pounds.

“Domestic butter and cheese are expected to remain price competitive in international markets throughout 2026. With strong export gains across most dairy products in February, forecasts for dairy product exports were revised upward. Higher export volumes are projected for cheese, butter, and dry whole milk.

“Dairy domestic use forecasts were revised downward. On a milk-fat basis, domestic use was forecast at 222.2 billion pounds, 1.2 billion pounds lower than the previous month’s projections. On a skim solids basis, domestic disappearance was forecast at 192.1 billion pounds, a 500-million-pound reduction from last month’s projections.