In Ukraine, in June 2025, milk in film, kefir in tetrapak and glass, cottage cheese and Suluguni cheese fell in price, while other dairy products rose in price, the Association of Milk Producers (AMP) reported.
The industry association noted that pasteurized milk with a fat content of up to 2.6% in the film in June 2025 averaged 45.65 UAH/kg, which is 75 kopecks (-2%) less than in the previous month, but 6.48 UAH (+17%) more than in the same period last year.
Pasteurized milk with a fat content of up to 2.6% in a plastic bottle averaged 63.81 UAH/kg, which is 21 kopecks (+0.3%) more than in May and 12.29 UAH/kg (+24%) more than in June 2024. Kefir with a fat content of 2.5% in the film cost an average of 55.54 UAH/kg, which is 37 kopecks (+1%) more than a month ago and 7.98 UAH (+17%) compared to last June.
Sour cream with a fat content of 15% in glasses averaged 191.13 UAH/kg, which is 4.04 UAH (+2%) more than in the previous month and 51.17 UAH/kg (+37%) compared to the same period last year.
The average price for drinking yogurt from 1.6% to 2.8% in plastic bottles amounted to UAH 116.44/kg and was UAH 2.15 (+1.9%) higher than in May and UAH 23.24 (+25%) higher than a year ago.
The average price for cottage cheese with a fat content of 9% was UAH 279.80/kg and was UAH 7.39 (-3%) lower than the average price of the previous month, but UAH 56.50 (+25%) higher than the price in June last year.
Domestically produced butter with a fat content of 72.5% to 73% costs an average of UAH 584.82 per kg, which is UAH 11.18 (+1.9%) more than in the previous month and UAH 162.63 (+39%) more than a year ago.
Dutch cheese with a fat content of 45% averaged 590.64 UAH/kg. Compared to the previous month, the product went up by UAH 12.77 (+2%), and compared to the previous year, it went up by UAH 139.41 (+31%).
The average price of Gouda cheese with 45% fat content from Ukrainian companies averaged 593.14 UAH/kg, exceeding the price of the previous month by 5.74 UAH (+1%), and last June by 131.50 UAH (+28%).
Over the past month, prices for pasteurized milk with a fat content of up to 2.6% in film, kefir with a fat content of 2.5% in tetrapak and glass, cottage cheese with a fat content of 9%, and Suluguni cheese have fallen in Ukraine. Prices for other dairy products in the consumer basket either remained unchanged or went up by 2.9% on average, said AVM analyst Giorgi Kukhaleishvili, quoted in the report.
He noted that butter is rising in price following high global commodity prices. In particular, the price of butter in the EU in May was at the level of EUR7200-7400 per ton, which is almost a record high that has not been recorded since 2017-2018.
Increased supply and consumption of imported cheeses in the domestic market hampers sales of domestic cheese producers. The share of imported cheeses in the domestic market reached 47%, the association stated.
Sales of domestic cheese can be maintained only through the use of promotional sales, and the results of most operators are still far from the level of last year, domestic cheese makers consider the import of European cheese to be the main obstacle, Infagro news agency reported.
“The expected decrease in cheese imports due to the strengthening of the euro has not yet occurred. In May, Ukraine imported 30% more hard, semi-hard and white cheeses. Separately, purchases of hard and semi-hard cheeses increased by 22% compared to May last year,” analysts said.
They noted that imported cheese occupies a fairly significant share of the Ukrainian market, and promotions are used in sales of European cheese no less actively than in sales of Ukrainian cheese.
Despite the huge problems with sales, Ukrainian cheese producers do not reduce base prices for their products, while promotional discounts often reach 25%, Infagro stated.
In 2025, Ichnia Milk and Canning Plant PJSC (ICCP, Chernihiv region) will launch a cottage cheese production line, for the construction of which it has raised UAH 150 million under the state program “Affordable Loans 5-7-9%” and will build a dairy farm, according to Vitaliy Koval, Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food.
“I visited the company and talked to the management. Despite the war, the plant has not stopped. Today, it employs about 300 people. The average salary at the enterprise is over UAH 19 thousand. Last year, they paid UAH 28.7 million to the budgets of various levels,” he said during a visit to the plant as part of a working trip to Chernihiv Oblast.
According to him, the company’s plans for 2025 include not only the launch of a new line with a capacity of 300 tons per month, but also the construction of a farm for 4,000 cattle.
Mr. Koval noted that Ichnia Dairy and Cannery manufactures its products according to international standards. The production capacity of condensed milk is 24 thousand tons per year. The company exports its products to Asia, Africa, America and Europe. In the first nine months of 2024 alone, this amount amounted to 3.3 thousand tons.
“The Ministry of Agrarian Policy supports the export orientation of Ukrainian processors, as one of our priorities is to open new markets for domestic products. And the management of Ichnia Dairy and Cannery already has experience that they can share with their colleagues,” the Minister of Agrarian Policy summarized.
“Ichnianskyi Dairy-Canning Plant is part of the Proviant group of companies, which is a distributor and exporter of condensed milk produced by the plant. Proviant LLC is a member of the group of the same name along with other companies engaged in the production and sale of dairy products.
According to the information in the NSSMC disclosure system, the shareholders with large stakes in IMCC are Proviant LLC, which owns 53.7% of the shares, and Hyperion Invest Closed Non-Diversified Venture Corporate Investment Fund, which owns 43.92%.
According to information on its website, IMCC occupies about 25% of the domestic market in the segment of products it produces (bottled milk and condensed milk) and exports them to 38 countries. Its brands are Ichnia, MamaMilla and Milada.
Sales of cheese on the domestic market are becoming more difficult, but cheese makers continue to actively produce it, as they consider cheese making more attractive than the production of exchange dairy products, Infagro news agency reported.
“Sales managers have to constantly work in promotions to get rid of stocks in warehouses. Promotional discounts can be quite significant. Such cheese is already becoming competitive with imported counterparts, which are also massively sold in promotions,” analysts advise and point out that European suppliers are becoming less interested in supplying cheese to Ukraine, and they will not rush to increase volumes in the future.
According to experts, due to difficulties with sales in the domestic market and the devaluation of the hryvnia, cheese exports are becoming even more important for producers. It is especially interesting for exporters to Kazakhstan.
“Production of semi-hard and white cheese may even increase in May. At the same time, many products have been stored in warehouses, and in June the production of such cheese should decrease significantly,” Infagro predicts.
Ukrainian cheese makers are facing a decline in sales due to both the high price of Ukrainian cheese and rising imports, according to Infagro, an industry news and analysis agency.
“In March, cheese imports increased by more than 40%, and in April this figure may increase by another 15-20%. That is, the share of European cheeses again accounts for about a third of total cheese sales in Ukraine,” the analysts said.
They emphasized that the share of imports in Ukraine’s domestic market is still lower than before the war, but this should force producers to take measures to stay in their own market.
“Due to the devaluation of the hryvnia, cheese exports are becoming even more profitable. At the same time, exports of cheese products, for example, to Kazakhstan, are falling rapidly. Ukrainian cheese products have already been practically pushed out of the Kazakh market by Russian producers. If exports of cheese products to Kazakhstan stop, production will have to be significantly reduced,” Infagro predicts.
Ukraine exported 2.082 thousand tons of cheese in January-March 2023, which is 2.04 times more than during the same period of 2022. According to customs statistics, in monetary terms, exports were $10.212 million, which is 2.3 times more than a year earlier.
At the same time, the volume of cheese imports was 24.9% less – 7.084 thousand tons in January-March this year. In monetary terms, imports decreased by 8.5% to $43.520 million compared to the same period in 2022.
In this case, the main export of cheese was carried out in Kazakhstan (54.17% of supplies in monetary terms), Moldova (23.86%) and Jordan (5.39%), imports – from Poland (42.39%), Germany (21.23%) and the Netherlands (8.96%).
Ukraine imported 33.818 thousand tons of cheese in 2022 (a decrease of 38.7% compared to 2021), while exporting 8.989 thousand tons (an increase of 29.8%). Exports of butter rose by 29.9% to 14.104 thousand tons last year, while imports fell by 8.21 times to 1.128 thousand tons. Exports of milk and cream (condensed) amounted to 26.696 thousand tons (+19%), while imports – 1.214 thousand tons (a 6.4-fold decrease).
