Why are the prices of dairy products rising almost weekly?

[NeverSure]

Thai crops to suffer worst drought in 15 years.

Drought slashes milk output, pushes up production costs

In Thailand milk is only mass production, or? I never saw freerange cows with big......(what is the english word?)

Udders in the US. Dairy cows aren't free range. They are fed some grass because cows can convert that to protein and then milk. But they need extra protein and carbohydrates from sugars in the form of grain to produce a max amount of milk. There are also only a few breeds in the world that are considered milk cows due to production of milk to feed ratio.

They also, like a human, only come fresh when "with child" LOL and for a time after birth. There is a pretty good span of down time for them as a result. Dairy breeds give a lot more milk than is needed by a calf.

Well in Austria they are still partially. In the morning they go out for eating some grass. In the evening they go back and get some additional special food. I think soya.

I thought for a country like Thailand it would be great to have them free range....no winter, they convert grass into milk and produce meat with very little care.

(even not as much as low tech approach)

It's possible we define free range differently in the two countries. I'm thinking of next to wild animals that hang around the place due to habitat provided and aren't even fenced in.

free-range

adjective

(of livestock, especially poultry) kept in natural conditions, with freedom of movement.

(of eggs) produced by birds reared under natural conditions. LINK

I agree with you because your description is how we do it too. They do have to have the protein and carbohydrate added to maximize milk production time and daily amount. We did that with mostly corn with molasses which they ate while being milked. They would come in for milking all by themselves because they were uncomfortably laden in the udder and because they knew they would get that feed.

Cheers

[h90]

Much of the pretty green grass you see in the Thai countryside is of very low nutrient value. And most of the high producing dairy breeds come from temperate, not tropical, climate so outside all day for those girls is a big No-no. A sunburned cow is highly stressed = little milk.

And making your own yogurt from dry powered milk is very simple, any child could do it. If you like to eat yogurt, learn to make your own, save bags of money and don't despoil the rubbish heap with throw-away plastic tubs from OZ, or UK.

One should think with low labor costs and big land areas it should be possible to go with lower producing strong breeds. Having only the low labor costs and no other costs (I think of about Myanmar or Cambodian labor). Beside that both the meat and the milk could be sold as organic.

I see lot of cows with their kids here in the south....lovely and tasty animals, but not for milk. And having one guy taking care of 3 cows seems very inefficient to me.

[renaissanc]

It's simple a small group of companies like CP are taking huge profits, no competition, no organised consumers and most of them can even compare prices.

CP owns all steps in the chain from the animal food, feritlsers, etc. to the store where they sell the products and for example 100% made by CP processed meat like saussages are up to 3 times the price of similar products in premium supermarkets in Europe!

Thailand is robbed dry by a handfull of family conglommerates and as soon as the masses wake up, we've seen what happens...

For those of you who are interested in such information ... when you take a photograph of the auric energy of processed food, such as CP's meats, for example, it has a very low vibration and the light is dim. Our cells not only need nutrients, but also the energy of the food. Eating CP's meats, for example, although they may taste good, doesn't do much for the body. They are therefore a waste of money.

Having said that, people working with auric photography, have discovered that when you spend 10-30 seconds expressing gratitude and sending love to the processed food, the auric energy becomes the same as organic food. (It doesn't increase the nutrients, of course, just the energy.) You may know that the Writings of several of the mainstream religions recommend saying a prayer of love and gratitude to your food before eating it. So, if you are a lover of processed food, you might like to consider doing this in order to make it of any benefit to you.

[ToddinChonburi]

Lets see now last I saw if you bought 4 yogurts in America you would pay $2.44 that would be 81.84 baht looks like you still get a pretty good deal here. As for milk not sure why they screw you so bad.

I buy the fat free at 52 baht for 4 .

[ToddinChonburi]

I have a friend that drinks Prune juice normally 149 or 159 he said it jumped to 239. now that is a major rip off !!!

[The Deerhunter]

Eggs are about to go up as well due to the heat wave . The news said chooks are under stress.

OH NO!!!! not more expensive eggs again....Bloody Unions !!!! We gave the chooks a rise last year, what more do they want?...

I dunno! Should we ask Chooka?

[h90]

In Thailand milk is only mass production, or? I never saw freerange cows with big......(what is the english word?)

Udders in the US. Dairy cows aren't free range. They are fed some grass because cows can convert that to protein and then milk. But they need extra protein and carbohydrates from sugars in the form of grain to produce a max amount of milk. There are also only a few breeds in the world that are considered milk cows due to production of milk to feed ratio.

They also, like a human, only come fresh when "with child" LOL and for a time after birth. There is a pretty good span of down time for them as a result. Dairy breeds give a lot more milk than is needed by a calf.

Well in Austria they are still partially. In the morning they go out for eating some grass. In the evening they go back and get some additional special food. I think soya.

I thought for a country like Thailand it would be great to have them free range....no winter, they convert grass into milk and produce meat with very little care.

(even not as much as low tech approach)

It's possible we define free range differently in the two countries. I'm thinking of next to wild animals that hang around the place due to habitat provided and aren't even fenced in.

free-range

adjective

(of livestock, especially poultry) kept in natural conditions, with freedom of movement.

(of eggs) produced by birds reared under natural conditions. LINK

I agree with you because your description is how we do it too. They do have to have the protein and carbohydrate added to maximize milk production time and daily amount. We did that with mostly corn with molasses which they ate while being milked. They would come in for milking all by themselves because they were uncomfortably laden in the udder and because they knew they would get that feed.

Cheers

The traditional way: The farmer lady goes with the bicycle and the cows thru the village to the place. In the evening they get walked back. Or sometimes they do themself (usually have one leading cow).

They also stay over night outside. But than they sleep in shifts while some cows are on guard. Funny to watch....Military organized cows, rofl. Once a year they kill someone. Usually a tourist who think it is funny that their pet dog, bark and attack some baby cow. Than the group of experienced cows take care of the problem.

You won't believe the mobility and power of such a big fat cow.

I guess when milked they also get some goodies. But my point is, that you have almost no cost, beside labor.

[nontabury]

Are you one of those people who complain about baht being too strong? Well if you are, let's just say when the baht gets weaker, prices of things go up, especially on imports.

The problem is that when the Bht is weak,understandedly the price of imported goods goes up.yet when the Bht is strong the price of imported goods still goes up.

Many years ago I imported goods by the container from Thailand, when the Bht became stronger I unfortunately had to raise my prices, yet when the Bht weakened I HAD to lower my prices to in order to retain my customers, otherwise they would have simple moved to my competeters. Why is this,maybe it's the lack of competition here in Thailand.

[h90]

General Happiness has made it a requirement that all cattle in the country study "Cowness". Cattle self-criticism sessions are time-consuming, often not affording the participants sufficient leeway to be milked.

That is your answer.

Well in the West the cows would have to do genderstudies and demanding equal pay as the bull

[NeverSure]

A milk cow is the biggest percentage money maker you can have on a farm. A small dairy is far more profitable than a grain farm such as rice. It has to be the right kind of ground though and not a wetland.

Rather than depreciate, this milk machine you have will reproduce itself with calves about 8 times during it's life. Do the math and ask if a Kubota tractor can do that. Registered dairy breed calves are more valuable than a generic cow.

This milk machine will produce enough milk to feed butter, cottage cheese and milk to ten to twelve families of four for about 6 - 8 months out of the year. Your family can be one of those ten. (A real milk cow will produce about 50 gallons of whole milk per week.)

During the months that the cow isn't giving milk (It has gone "dry") it is preparing to produce for you another valuable calf and then come fresh with milk again.

A cow reproduces itself while the Kubota depreciates. Now, show me how to breed Kubotas and fuel them from the pasture and we'll need to talk.

Edited May 9, 2015 by NeverSure

[NeverSure]

General Happiness has made it a requirement that all cattle in the country study "Cowness". Cattle self-criticism sessions are time-consuming, often not affording the participants sufficient leeway to be milked.

That is your answer.

Well in the West the cows would have to do genderstudies and demanding equal pay as the bull

LOL.

There's a lot of money in having a top line bull. It costs a lot of money to have a cow bred to that bull to inherit its bloodline.

Besides, look how promiscuous a good bull can be compared to a cow. They really aren't a lot different from men.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I've bought the same brand of Thai yogurt on 450g containers for a couple years.

As best as I recall, it was pretty stable at 49 baht for a long time. Now, in the past couple months, it's increased to the mid 50s and then again to 59b at present.

That's about a 20% increase in a matter of a couple months. And nothing different or changed about the product.

[NeverSure]

The traditional way: The farmer lady goes with the bicycle and the cows thru the village to the place. In the evening they get walked back. Or sometimes they do themself (usually have one leading cow).

They also stay over night outside. But than they sleep in shifts while some cows are on guard. Funny to watch....Military organized cows, rofl. Once a year they kill someone. Usually a tourist who think it is funny that their pet dog, bark and attack some baby cow. Than the group of experienced cows take care of the problem.

You won't believe the mobility and power of such a big fat cow.

I guess when milked they also get some goodies. But my point is, that you have almost no cost, beside labor.

I've never heard of a dairy cow killing anyone and we had at least one or two of them always when I was growing up.

I agree about the profit. See my post above.

[NeverSure]

I've bought the same brand of Thai yogurt on 450g containers for a couple years.

As best as I recall, it was pretty stable at 49 baht for a long time. Now, in the past couple months, it's increased to the mid 50s and then again to 59b at present.

That's about a 20% increase in a matter of a couple months. And nothing different or changed about the product.

Do you like cottage cheese with fruit mixed into it? I do and it and yogurt are not that hard to make.

[jackanapes]

I am inclined to agree the price of dairy products has risen almost daily there should be a curb on a lot of products there doesn't seem any logical reason for the increases is it just greed?

[Liquorice]

Eggs are about to go up as well due to the heat wave . The news said chooks are under stress.

OH NO!!!! not more expensive eggs again....Bloody Unions !!!! We gave the chooks a rise last year, what more do they want?...

Its to be egg-spected

Good yoke Charlie.

[blazes]

One thing absent from this thread is an indication of where you all live! Cos I find that milk and yogurt in Chiang Mai have not gone up at all in the last three years, at least not more than a baht or two.

However, price gouging exists and is alive and well. A farang restaurant I occasionally patronise (opposite the Shell station on Huay Kaew) recently took a 2-week holiday. When they returned, the price of their desserts had sky-rocketed from 79 to 99 baht, an increase of 25%.

[renaissanc]

One thing absent from this thread is an indication of where you all live! Cos I find that milk and yogurt in Chiang Mai have not gone up at all in the last three years, at least not more than a baht or two.

However, price gouging exists and is alive and well. A farang restaurant I occasionally patronise (opposite the Shell station on Huay Kaew) recently took a 2-week holiday. When they returned, the price of their desserts had sky-rocketed from 79 to 99 baht, an increase of 25%.

I live in Prapadaeng, Samuthprakarn. I am referring to prices in BigC and Tesco here. The prices keep changing in their stores here. For sure, in a week or 10 days 91 Baht for milk will be 92 Baht. Then 2 weeks later it'll be 93 Baht ...

[Don Mega]

One thing for sure the prices will never return to normal

when the drought is over,Milk is more expensive here than

in the UK, also expect the prices of imported food products

to increase now that the THB has lost some of its value,as

they seemed to be increasing regularly even when the THB

was very strong.

regards worgeordie

The OP is paying 70p a litre.

Looking at this website that price seems to be n par with UK prices.

http://www.mysupermarket.co.uk/shelves/fresh_milk_in_tesco.html

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I've bought the same brand of Thai yogurt on 450g containers for a couple years.

As best as I recall, it was pretty stable at 49 baht for a long time. Now, in the past couple months, it's increased to the mid 50s and then again to 59b at present.

That's about a 20% increase in a matter of a couple months. And nothing different or changed about the product.

Do you like cottage cheese with fruit mixed into it? I do and it and yogurt are not that hard to make.

I do...and that's the way I fix my yogurt, plain low-fat with some jam mixed in.

However, I'm already making/preparing enough things at home already because a] of silly prices here for non-Thai stuff such as peanut butter or hummus, or b] western products that used to be available at supermarkets here no longer are in recent months, such as canned frijoles, frozen waffles, etc.

So, I'm really not looking to expand my already burgeoning kitchen chefing duties!

Plus, the same kind of price increases are also occurring with regular milk, which you'd need anyway for homemade cottage cheese.

My wife buys the six-packs of Foremost UHT chocolate milk. Those have gone from 59b to 62 to 64 and now this week 66-67 baht per package in the past couple months. No escaping it.

[peterb17]

I'm afraid someone had to say this- I realise that many are living on a tight budget.

To worry about paying 3 or 4 baht more for a product you enjoy just seems bizarre .

Food prices are increasing world wide, the world population has more than doubled in my lifetime and I have a suspicion that intensive agricultural practices are depending much more on fertilisers, pesticides etc- all at a cost to the farmer.

Nothing is going to get cheaper- water wars / shortages will plague future generations .

[elgordo38]

Eggs are about to go up as well due to the heat wave . The news said chooks are under stress.

I am watching the prices at KFC

[elgordo38]

Eggs are about to go up as well due to the heat wave . The news said chooks are under stress.

OH NO!!!! not more expensive eggs again....Bloody Unions !!!! We gave the chooks a rise last year, what more do they want?...

Why are you always looking for a reason to cackle about? The poor buggars give eggs and their meat what more do you want.

[elgordo38]

One thing for sure the prices will never return to normal

when the drought is over,Milk is more expensive here than

in the UK, also expect the prices of imported food products

to increase now that the THB has lost some of its value,as

they seemed to be increasing regularly even when the THB

was very strong.

regards worgeordie

Same as beer... In my home country much cheaper...

Yeah its the airline ticket to go and get it that kills you.

[renaissanc]

I'm afraid someone had to say this- I realise that many are living on a tight budget.

To worry about paying 3 or 4 baht more for a product you enjoy just seems bizarre .

Food prices are increasing world wide, the world population has more than doubled in my lifetime and I have a suspicion that intensive agricultural practices are depending much more on fertilisers, pesticides etc- all at a cost to the farmer.

Nothing is going to get cheaper- water wars / shortages will plague future generations .

With all due respect, this isn't about anyone's budget. This is about an observation. I avoid dairy products for the most part because of the chemicals and hormones the producers inject the cows with. I see the change in prices when I walk past the long row(s) of dairy products in BigC and Tesco.

CP is a corporation. The owner is Thailand's richest man. He didn't get rich by being loving, compassionate, and kind all the time. Corporations have friends in high places so that they are unaccountable and can do what they please. CP controls the dairy industry feed chain and probably also the prices of dairy products. Dairy prices keep rising noticeably out of sync with the cost of living. Is it because of corporate greed and the desire to increase the value of their shares or is it just because of the temporary drought? Will CP be kind enough to reduce their prices after the drought period or will the price trend continue with another reason / excuse?

[overherebc]

Eggs are about to go up as well due to the heat wave . The news said chooks are under stress.

OH NO!!!! not more expensive eggs again....Bloody Unions !!!! We gave the chooks a rise last year, what more do they want?...

Why are you always looking for a reason to cackle about? The poor buggars give eggs and their meat what more do you want.

I blame the internet and the price of the new eggsboxes

[orpheus454]

What an eggs- asperating reply, Charlie H.

Eggs are about to go up as well due to the heat wave . The news said chooks are under stress.

OH NO!!!! not more expensive eggs again....Bloody Unions !!!! We gave the chooks a rise last year, what more do they want?...

Its to be egg-spected

He was only yolking...

[peterb17]

I'm afraid someone had to say this- I realise that many are living on a tight budget.

To worry about paying 3 or 4 baht more for a product you enjoy just seems bizarre .

Food prices are increasing world wide, the world population has more than doubled in my lifetime and I have a suspicion that intensive agricultural practices are depending much more on fertilisers, pesticides etc- all at a cost to the farmer.

Nothing is going to get cheaper- water wars / shortages will plague future generations .

With all due respect, this isn't about anyone's budget. This is about an observation. I avoid dairy products for the most part because of the chemicals and hormones the producers inject the cows with. I see the change in prices when I walk past the long row(s) of dairy products in BigC and Tesco.

CP is a corporation. The owner is Thailand's richest man. He didn't get rich by being loving, compassionate, and kind all the time. Corporations have friends in high places so that they are unaccountable and can do what they please. CP controls the dairy industry feed chain and probably also the prices of dairy products. Dairy prices keep rising noticeably out of sync with the cost of living. Is it because of corporate greed and the desire to increase the value of their shares or is it just because of the temporary drought? Will CP be kind enough to reduce their prices after the drought period or will the price trend continue with another reason / excuse?

I realise it may be an observation- but it must have concerned you to make public the observation.

CP is a successful company- and quite frankly good luck to the guy that owns it. Successful companies are driven by talented people and provide jobs for many thousands.

Is CP an unethical company? I don't know.

I realise this is not relevant to Thailand- the UK has just rejected a socialist dream- whose ideals revolved around hitting the rich ( ignored the fact that the top 5% provide 26% of tax revenues) and used the politics of envy.

Like it or not- globalisation is here to stay.

However I would say that the tax avoidance by major American corporations is unacceptable - the billions being channelled through Ireland and Liechtenstein. That is going to change.

[h90]

I'm afraid someone had to say this- I realise that many are living on a tight budget.

To worry about paying 3 or 4 baht more for a product you enjoy just seems bizarre .

Food prices are increasing world wide, the world population has more than doubled in my lifetime and I have a suspicion that intensive agricultural practices are depending much more on fertilisers, pesticides etc- all at a cost to the farmer.

Nothing is going to get cheaper- water wars / shortages will plague future generations .

With all due respect, this isn't about anyone's budget. This is about an observation. I avoid dairy products for the most part because of the chemicals and hormones the producers inject the cows with. I see the change in prices when I walk past the long row(s) of dairy products in BigC and Tesco.

CP is a corporation. The owner is Thailand's richest man. He didn't get rich by being loving, compassionate, and kind all the time. Corporations have friends in high places so that they are unaccountable and can do what they please. CP controls the dairy industry feed chain and probably also the prices of dairy products. Dairy prices keep rising noticeably out of sync with the cost of living. Is it because of corporate greed and the desire to increase the value of their shares or is it just because of the temporary drought? Will CP be kind enough to reduce their prices after the drought period or will the price trend continue with another reason / excuse?

not to forget the bird flue scam where chicken outside were complete banned....A law that look like CP drafted it. (Thaksin government) and the chicken and egg prices exploded. Force out all small farmers from business

Thailand even had to import eggs from Malaysia who didn't do these laws. Most probably the importer was CP again.

[sprq]

The really big increase in dairy prices occurred about 12 years ago. Overnight butter -- both imported and local -- cheese and milk doubled in price. For example, Allowrie butter (1 lb) went from about 35 to 70 baht, Mainland New Zealand cheese (250gm) went from about 80 baht to 150 baht, Meiji milk pretty much doubled in price, and so on, all in a flash.

I never found out why, and ever since then the prices have edged up year by year. The wallet-busting result is most clearly seen with butter -- imported or local, it doesn't matter which -- which is now nearing three times the price it was early this century.

A lot of people here have talked about price-gouging local producers, but nobody seems to be able to account for why dairy prices have increased so much across the board, whether made here or imported.

(By the way, at the point prices doubled, the baht was stable, so currency rates have nothing to do with that, and since then the baht has gone way up against other currencies, so the price rises on imported products make even less sense from that point of view).

Edited May 9, 2015 by sprq