The Dairy Industry
The Australian dairy industry is a major rural industry in Australia. Based on farmgate value of production of $3.2 billion in 2004/05, it ranks as the third most important rural industry and the fourth most important in exports valued at $2.6 billion.
While Australia accounts for an estimated 2% of world production, it is an important exporter of dairy products. Australia ranks third in terms of world trade with a 13% share of all dairy product exports behind New Zealand and European (Dairy Australia, 2005, p. 2).
Thus the dairy industry is extremely important to the Australian economy, particularly in rural and regional areas where most of the processing occurs, in generating significant economic activity and employment opportunities.
The Australian dairy industry is divided into two sectors, dairy farming and dairy processing.
Dairy Processing
Dairy processing involves the use of manufacturing technology to turn
milk from the farm into products such as fluid milk products (bottled and
packaged milk - whole, pasteurised, skim, UHT etc.), flavoured milk,
buttermilk, eggnog, yoghurt, cream, butter, butter oil, curds, cheese
and cheese spreads, condensed and powdered milk, malted milk, ice
cream, yogurt, lactose, and whey products - used in the manufacture
of ice-cream, cakes and biscuits, chocolate flavouring, baby formula,
yogurt, beverages.
Dairy manufactured products can be categorised into four major
streams:
1. Skim milk powder (SMP)/buttermilk powder (BMP)/butter
2. Butter/casein
3. Cheese
4. Wholemilk powder (WMP)
Within the Australian and international markets yogurt production and
sales has experienced considerable growth over the past decade. The
growth in yogurt sales has been underpinned by continued product
innovation in the areas of packaging, flavours and the use of probiotic
cultures, as well as new products, such as drinking yogurts, coupled with
consumer perception that yoghurt is a convenient, healthy snack.
Cheese is also a major product for the Australian dairy processing
industry, with sales of around 187,000 tonnes within Australia, valued
at an estimated A$1.2 billion, and export sales approaching 227,500
tonnes and worth nearly A$877 million in 2004/05 (Dairy Australia,
2005, p. 23).
These milk based products are produced within Australia by a number of
major dairy companies, including Fonterra, Murray Goulburn, San Miguel,
Parmalat, Nestlé, Kraft, National Foods, Bongrain, Tatura Milk Industries,
Warrnambool Cheese, Butler, Unilever and Peters and Brown Foods.
Processing Sectors
The dairy processing industry is comprised of three main sectors:
- Milk and Cream Processing - the grading, filtering, chilling
fresh liquid whole milk or cream or manufacturing, bottling or
cartoning pasteurized liquid whole milk, flavoured whole or
skim milk, liquid skim milk, liquid standardized milk, cream,
sour cream, cultured buttermilk or yoghurt - Ice Cream Manufacturing - the manufacture of frozen
confectionery, ice cream, milk ices, and frozen water ices or
fruit ices - Dairy Product Manufacture – the manufacture of butter, cheese, condensed concentrated or evaporated milk, milk powder, and dairy products
Today, quality assurance, consumer views on food and nutrition and meeting consumer preferences are the driving force in the production of dairy related products.
Dairy Australia (2005) Australian Dairy Industry in Focus 2005
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