Lactose
EU origins lose out in export destinations
Europe
Local market indicators are strong, but EU origins get priced out of the export markets
EU lactose prices moved up to EUR 1500 FOB and higher with some outliers even reaching prices beyond EUR 1600. Demand for standardization drives the market as milk supply peaks at the moment and powder dryers are running at maximum capacity. The market is not as confident as all these signals seem to indicate as the world market is now entirely out of reach with US origins winning all export deals at the moment.
Americas
US origins are in demand internationally
The US market has become quite tight now that the EU is above US prices. Appetite for US origins in markets of Central America and SE Asia is strong and exports are very good. Lactose is mostly trading in the range of USD 0.75-0.77/lb (1655-1680/t) ex works but in the domestic market higher levels are reached as well.
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