# Waikato Dairy Farmers Post Strong Season As Production Gains Counter Rising Operating Costs - EDairy News English

> Cooper Aitken's annual benchmarking of 134 dairy farms shows Waikato, New Zealand farmers had a strong 2025-2026 season with about 7% production gains and high milk payouts. Operating costs rose sharply, with owner-operator costs reaching $5.99/kgMS from $5.45, driven by supplementary feed, fertilizer and animal health inflation.

- Date: 2026-11-01 · published 2026-11-01T21:13:59.169Z
- Category: report · region New Zealand · magnitude low
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/71451-waikato-dairy-farmers-post-strong-season-as-production-gains-counter-rising
- Commodities: [Milk (Class III)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/MILK.md)

## Why it matters

Higher production supports regional milk supply, while rising feed and fertilizer costs compress farm margins and may tighten demand for supplementary feed and fertilizer inputs.

## Read by commodity

- MILK: neutral

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| MILK | 2020-07-01 | [May dairy product production mixed, huge gains in SMP - Brownfield Ag News](https://feedsoft.ai/events/52122-may-dairy-product-production-mixed-huge-gains-in-smp-brownfield-ag-news.md) | +12.9% | +16.5% |
| MILK | 2020-01-16 | [Dairy Report: Expect Slower Growth In Milk Per Cow - EDairy News English](https://feedsoft.ai/events/55106-dairy-report-expect-slower-growth-in-milk-per-cow-edairy-news-english.md) | +0.1% | +0.1% |
| MILK | 2020-05-13 | [USDA expects higher milk production, continued strong demand - Brownfield Ag News](https://feedsoft.ai/events/53291-usda-expects-higher-milk-production-continued-strong-demand-brownfield-ag-news.md) | +4.6% | +73.5% |
| MILK | 2025-07-12 | [Cheese production continues to grow - Dairy Star](https://feedsoft.ai/events/23757-cheese-production-continues-to-grow-dairy-star.md) | +0.5% | -0.0% |
| MILK | 2023-06-29 | [The Dairy Industry Is Growing To Keep Pace With Intense Global Demand - EDairy News English](https://feedsoft.ai/events/35490-the-dairy-industry-is-growing-to-keep-pace-with-intense-global-demand-edairy.md) | -2.6% | -3.8% |

## Sources

- en.edairynews.com: https://en.edairynews.com/waikato-dairy-farmers-post-strong-season-as-production-gains-counter-rising-operating-costs/

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