SWP
Prices on both side of the Atlantic appear to have peaked
Europe
Whey powder market is stable
Feed whey powder continued to go up and down in recent weeks but the prices remained overall range bound at a level around EUR 1700, delivered Netherlands. In food whey prices at the top end of the range remained close to EUR 2100, and conventional product trades at EUR 1900, both ex works. Occasionally some Eastern EU countries are below that price level. With WPC-80 coming down rapidly to EUR 16/kg in Western EU and somewhat lower in Eastern EU, more whey solids may be converted into whey powder.
Americas
Bullish price trend comes to an end
The sweet whey powder market turned rather quiet in early November and prices moved a bit lower after many months of upward momentum. Most buyers are focused on 2027 by now and are sorting out their allocations. Lower tier product is traded at USD 0.75-0.80/lb (1655-1765/t) while top tier brands are mostly changing hands in the range of USD 0.85-0.90/lb (1875-1985/t) and occasionally somewhat higher. WPC-80 prices continue to decline, be it at a slower pace than in the EU. Product is generally traded in the range of USD 7.75/lb for lower tier product and USD 9/lb for higher tier product.
Nice to know
Milk proteins on the move!
After climbing from below EUR 5/kg in mid 2023 to a peak level of EUR 28.5/kg for occasional transactions in mid-2026, WPC-80 prices are finally cooling down. One reason? Sports nutrition manufacturers have started replacing part of their whey protein with MPC, caseinates and other milk proteins to keep costs under control. This has pushed MPC prices from EUR 8 to 15/kg, while caseins and caseinates are also rising fast.
But where does WPC-80 go from here? With WPC-80 and MPC prices now getting close, the cost advantage of blending is disappearing. Why settle for a substitute if you can get the ‘real deal’ at nearly the same price? Of course, it takes time for commodity prices to filter through to retail shelves, so things could look very different by Q1 or Q2 2027. The big question is whether consumers will stick with blended proteins or switch back to pure whey once prices allow. That makes the WPC-80 outlook anything but predictable.
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