# USDA Raises 2026 Milk Price Forecast as Dairy Production Grows

> USDA's March 2026 Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook raised its forecast for the US dairy herd to 9.570 million head and milk production to 234.7 billion pounds. January milk output rose 3.2% year over year as herd numbers grew and producers kept cows.

- Date: 2026-03-17 · published 2026-03-17T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: report · region US · magnitude low
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/20166-usda-raises-2026-milk-price-forecast-as-dairy-production-grows
- Commodities: [Milk (Class III)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/MILK.md)

## Why it matters

Higher projected supply growth is a bearish factor for milk prices, although the forecast also raised the all-milk price outlook on firmer product prices.

## Read by commodity

- MILK: neutral

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| MILK | 2025-05-20 | [USDA Raises 2025 U.S. Milk Production Forecast, Sees Slight Dip in 2026 Prices - Dairy Producer](https://feedsoft.ai/events/24676-usda-raises-2025-u-s-milk-production-forecast-sees-slight-dip-in-2026-prices.md) | +0.1% | +0.5% |
| MILK | 2026-05-15 | [USDA Raises 2026 Milk Production Forecast; Price Forecasts Mixed - Cheese Reporter](https://feedsoft.ai/events/19256-usda-raises-2026-milk-production-forecast-price-forecasts-mixed-cheese-reporter.md) | -0.2% | -5.7% |
| MILK | 2020-06-13 | [USDA Raises Forecasts for 2020 Milk Production - HART](https://feedsoft.ai/events/52608-usda-raises-forecasts-for-2020-milk-production-hart.md) | +2.8% | +19.2% |
| MILK | 2022-10-12 | [USDA boosts milk production forecast but raises price projections too \| Ag Proud](https://feedsoft.ai/events/39241-usda-boosts-milk-production-forecast-but-raises-price-projections-too-ag-proud.md) | -0.2% | -4.2% |
| MILK | 2026-08-12 | [USDA nudges 2026 milk production forecast higher \| Ag Proud](https://feedsoft.ai/events/17912-usda-nudges-2026-milk-production-forecast-higher-ag-proud.md) | -0.5% | -2.7% |

## Sources

- dairyproducer.com: https://dairyproducer.com/usda-2026-dairy-outlook-milk-price-forecast/

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.