UK dairy export value achieves £1.8 billion in 2024

More than 76% of the UK’s total dairy exports were shipped to the EU, UK’s closest and largest market, and were worth £1.4 billion, up 5.6% on the year. With total UK cheese exports hitting the highest level since 2020 at £887 million, 72% of shipments worth £641 million headed to the EU, which marks a 9.8% on the year, AHDB confirmed.

The US is the UK’s single largest export market for dairy outside Europe, and 2024 saw shipments increase by 5.7% on the year. The bulk of UK dairy exports to the USA is cheese, worth £75 million in 2024, an increase of 13.5% compared to 2023.

Lucy Randolph, AHDB head of international trade development manager (dairy), said: “UK dairy exports fared well in 2024 against a backdrop of challenging trading conditions, which impacted our competitiveness on the global stage.

“The performance of our cheese exports to the EU was particularly encouraging and included an impressive 71.8% increase in value of shipments to Germany worth £48 million. We intend to build on this through our extensive programme of activity, which includes our dairy team taking part for the first time at Anuga in Cologne in October.”

World-class dairy produce thrives on the global stage

Elsewhere, the appointment last year of AHDB representatives in-market, roles co-funded with the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has paid dividends with Victor Willis in the US, Adil Khan in the Middle East and Karen Liao in Asia.

Ms Randolph added that cheese exports to the US showed impressive growth in 2024 and the demand for high-quality table butter is growing.

“The work of Victor on the ground will continue to play a pivotal role in building on this growth. While the threat of tariffs looms across agri-food products, the industry has successfully weathered tariffs on dairy products to the US in the past and we remain quietly confident of the value of our quality dairy products to this critical market. With major events on the horizon, including IDDBA—a premier dairy show that moves across the US—and our recent reception at Winter Fancy Foods, the US remains one of our most important markets.

“While the total value of dairy exports to the Middle East fell, there were notable gains in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar, up 18.9% to £36.2 million and 15.3% to £6.5 million respectively. Cheese exports to the UAE soared by 52.5% to £23.4 million, and to Qatar by 47.7% to £3.3 million, reflecting the positive impact of events like Gulfood and the Lulu Qatar retail promotion where AHDB had a major presence.

“We felt the challenges of trade to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait but expect our exports to grow in both markets in 2025. This will be supported by Adil’s market insight and participation at events like the Saudi Food Show and focused in-store activities in both markets,” she continued.

The expert also explained that while trade in Asia also presented challenges in 2024, not least with tight economic conditions impacting demand, good opportunities persisted in high-income countries with an established UK dairy presence like Singapore.

“We will also be at Food and Hotel Asia in April, alongside five dairy exporters, to tap into this large, affluent market and bolster exports to the region.

“It’s exciting to explore new markets such as Thailand, identified as a priority market for dairy exporters following the UK Dairy Showcase last autumn, with our first trade presence at Thaifex in May and retail promotions planned for later in the year.

“With the support of Karen Liao, who joined our team in October, we will continue to help our dairy exporters maximise opportunities in the region with in-store retail promotions planned and an enhanced presence at tradeshows.

“AHDB will continue to work with industry and government to help ensure our world-class dairy produce thrives on the global stage in 2025 and beyond,” Ms Randolph concluded.

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