Market Information
Average UK Milk Yield
Published 21 August 19
Average UK Milk Yields by Milk Year
For more information on average milk yields click here.
| Average Size of Dairy Herd (thousand head)¹ | Average Yield (litres per cow per annum)² | Total Milk Production From Dairy Herd (million litres) 3 | |
| 2001/2 | 2,229 | 6,449 | 14,373 |
| 2002/3 | 2,224 | 6,450 | 14,343 |
| 2003/4* | 2,185 | 6,631 | 14,492 |
| 2004/5 | 2,060 | 6,886 | 14,183 |
| 2005/6 | 2,003 | 7,001 | 14,020 |
| 2006/7 | 1,989 | 6,963 | 13,852 |
| 2007/8* | 1,954 | 6,950 | 13,579 |
| 2008/9 | 1,894 | 6,974 | 13,209 |
| 2009/10 | 1,853 | 7,056 | 13,073 |
| 2010/11 | 1,836 | 7,406 | 13,599 |
| 2011/12* | 1,799 | 7,641 | 13,749 |
| 2012/13 | 1,795 | 7,361 | 13,215 |
| 2013/14 | 1,805 | 7,712 | 13,920 |
| 2014/15 | 1,866 | 7,844 | 14,638 |
| 2015/16* | 1,906 | 7,849 | 14,960 |
| 2016/17 | 1,897 | 7,495 | 14,220 |
| 2017/18† | 1,897 | 7,825 | 14,840 |
| 2018/19† | 1,881 | 7,968 | 14,991 |
| Year-on-year change, 2017/18-2018/19: | |||
| Change | -16 | 143 | 151 |
| % Change | -0.8% | 1.8% | 1.0% |
* Leap Year †Provisional
Source: DEFRA
¹From 1999/00 to 2004/05 the average size of the dairy herd is estimated by taking the size of the herd at June and December from the agricultural census information, and calculating the population trends during the remaining months of the year. The average herd size shown in the table below is therefore consistent with, but not the same as, Defra's published agricultural census data. From 2005/06 data is obtained through the Cattle Tracing System (CTS).
²The average yields have to be taken with a degree of caution as they are based only on the total milk production recorded divided by the size of the dairy herd.
3Please note that total milk production is based on all milk produced on farm, including the milk which is delivered to dairies, milk used on farm in the production of dairy products, milk consumed in farm households, milk fed to livestock and farm waste; suckled milk is excluded.
Average UK Milk Yields by Calendar Year
For more information on average milk yields click here.
| Average Yield (litres per cow per annum) | |
| 2001 | 6,346 |
| 2002 | 6,493 |
| 2003 | 6,621 |
| 2004* | 6,763 |
| 2005 | 6,986 |
| 2006 | 6,977 |
| 2007 | 6,931 |
| 2008* | 6,972 |
| 2009 | 7,061 |
| 2010 | 7,303 |
| 2011 | 7,563 |
| 2012* | 7,477 |
| 2013 | 7,543 |
| 2014 | 7,897 |
| 2015 | 7,897 |
| 2016* | 7,559 |
| 2017 | 7,893 |
| 2018† | 7,959 |
| Year-on-year change, 2017-2018: | |
| Change | 66 |
| % Change | 0.8% |
| Ten-year change, 2008-2018: | |
| Change | 987 |
| % Change | 14.1% |
* Leap Year † Provisional
Source: DEFRA
