Turkey’s milk production rises in October

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkey's cow milk production rose 2.3 percent year-on-year in October, the country's statistical authority announced on Thursday.

Cow milk production rose to 774,681 tons in the month from 756,970 tons in October 2017, TurkStat said in a statement.

In the month, 135,992 tons of drinking milk was produced, down 3.3 percent from the same month last year.

Data also showed that cheese production from cow’s milk fell 1.7 percent on an annual basis to 55,255 tons.

"Cheese production from sheep, goat, buffalo, and mixed milk was 1,445 tons, down 19.7 percent compared to the same month last year," it added.

In October, Turkey also produced 96,393 tons of yogurt, 62,380 tons of the salty yogurt drink, ayran, 8,436 tons of milk powder, 5,873 tons of butter, and 2,201 tons of cream.

On a monthly basis, the seasonal- and calendar-adjusted amount of collected cow’s milk fell 2.6 percent in October.

Last year, around 9.1 million tons of cow's milk was produced in Turkey, with over 1.5 million tons of drinking milk production.

The country's exports of dairy products and eggs amounted to $711.5 million, while imports stood at $126.4 million in 2017.