Milk production in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Milk production was 15.94 million tonnes in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
15.94 million tonnes
Change on year
up 1.1%
World rank
13th
of 192 countries
All-time high
17.26 million tonnes
in 1983
All-time low
11.68 million tonnes
in 1964
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Milk production in United Kingdom, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 15.94 million tonnes for milk production in 2024.
The figure is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 5.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, milk production in United Kingdom peaked at 17.26 million tonnes in 1983 and was at its lowest, 11.68 million tonnes, in 1964.
That places United Kingdom 13th out of 192 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Milk production in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 12.00 million tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 12.30 million tonnes | +2.5% |
| 1963 | 11.94 million tonnes | -2.9% |
| 1964 | 11.68 million tonnes | -2.2% |
| 1965 | 12.12 million tonnes | +3.7% |
| 1966 | 11.97 million tonnes | -1.2% |
| 1967 | 12.34 million tonnes | +3.1% |
| 1968 | 12.63 million tonnes | +2.3% |
| 1969 | 12.75 million tonnes | +0.9% |
| 1970 | 12.97 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 1971 | 13.30 million tonnes | +2.6% |
| 1972 | 14.17 million tonnes | +6.5% |
| 1973 | 14.40 million tonnes | +1.6% |
| 1974 | 13.99 million tonnes | -2.8% |
| 1975 | 13.93 million tonnes | -0.4% |
| 1976 | 14.42 million tonnes | +3.5% |
| 1977 | 15.20 million tonnes | +5.4% |
| 1978 | 15.90 million tonnes | +4.6% |
| 1979 | 15.91 million tonnes | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 15.97 million tonnes | +0.4% |
| 1981 | 15.87 million tonnes | -0.7% |
| 1982 | 16.76 million tonnes | +5.6% |
| 1983 | 17.26 million tonnes | +3.0% |
| 1984 | 16.23 million tonnes | -6.0% |
| 1985 | 16.02 million tonnes | -1.3% |
| 1986 | 16.23 million tonnes | +1.3% |
| 1987 | 15.51 million tonnes | -4.5% |
| 1988 | 15.13 million tonnes | -2.4% |
| 1989 | 14.91 million tonnes | -1.5% |
| 1990 | 15.25 million tonnes | +2.3% |
| 1991 | 14.76 million tonnes | -3.2% |
| 1992 | 14.78 million tonnes | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 14.83 million tonnes | +0.4% |
| 1994 | 14.99 million tonnes | +1.1% |
| 1995 | 14.84 million tonnes | -1.0% |
| 1996 | 14.81 million tonnes | -0.2% |
| 1997 | 14.84 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 1998 | 14.63 million tonnes | -1.4% |
| 1999 | 15.01 million tonnes | +2.6% |
| 2000 | 14.49 million tonnes | -3.5% |
| 2001 | 14.71 million tonnes | +1.5% |
| 2002 | 14.87 million tonnes | +1.1% |
| 2003 | 15.01 million tonnes | +0.9% |
| 2004 | 14.55 million tonnes | -3.0% |
| 2005 | 14.47 million tonnes | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 14.32 million tonnes | -1.1% |
| 2007 | 14.02 million tonnes | -2.0% |
| 2008 | 13.72 million tonnes | -2.2% |
| 2009 | 13.85 million tonnes | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 14.07 million tonnes | +1.6% |
| 2011 | 13.85 million tonnes | -1.6% |
| 2012 | 13.84 million tonnes | -0.0% |
| 2013 | 13.94 million tonnes | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 15.05 million tonnes | +8.0% |
| 2015 | 15.32 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 14.66 million tonnes | -4.3% |
| 2017 | 15.27 million tonnes | +4.1% |
| 2018 | 15.31 million tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 15.67 million tonnes | +2.4% |
| 2020 | 15.69 million tonnes | +0.1% |
| 2021 | 15.89 million tonnes | +1.3% |
| 2022 | 15.76 million tonnes | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 15.76 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 15.94 million tonnes | +1.1% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 15.94 million tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.53 million tonnes, 10.4× the median. (61 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 15.94 million tonnes is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2.10 million tonnes, 7.6× the median. (49 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 12.19 million tonnes | 11.68 million tonnes | 12.75 million tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 14.42 million tonnes | 12.97 million tonnes | 15.91 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 15.99 million tonnes | 14.91 million tonnes | 17.26 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 14.87 million tonnes | 14.63 million tonnes | 15.25 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 14.40 million tonnes | 13.72 million tonnes | 15.01 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.70 million tonnes | 13.84 million tonnes | 15.67 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.81 million tonnes | 15.69 million tonnes | 15.94 million tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
- 10 Turkey 22.49 million tonnes compare
- 11 New Zealand 21.53 million tonnes compare
- 12 Poland 16.05 million tonnes compare
- 14 Bangladesh 15.04 million tonnes compare
- 15 Netherlands 14.82 million tonnes compare
- 16 Mexico 14.14 million tonnes compare
More reference data data for United Kingdom
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.97 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.01 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 10.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 15.81 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 59.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 5.48 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is milk production in United Kingdom?
- Milk production in United Kingdom was 15.94 million tonnes in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest milk production recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 17.26 million tonnes in 1983.
- What is the lowest milk production recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.68 million tonnes in 1964.
- How does United Kingdom rank for milk production?
- United Kingdom ranks 13th out of 192 countries with data for 2024.
- Is milk production rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Milk production. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Milk represents the raw equivalents of all dairy products including cheese, yoghurt, cream and milk consumed as the final product.