Favourable weather has seen the dairy season get off to a strong start, with production rising by 4.7 per cent for the month of August compared with the same month last year, according to data from the Dairy Companies Association of NZ (DCANZ).
DCANZ said season-to-date milk production was up by 5.5 per cent and for the 12 months to August, production was up 0.5 per cent.
ASB senior rural economist Nathan Penny said the data indicated "a degree of upside" to the bank's production forecast of a 2 per cent increase for the season.
Penny noted that it was still early days, with just 8 per cent or so of the season's milk having been collected so far. He added production in August 2017 was weak.
The high-producing months run from now through to January, with the peak production generally occurring in October.
