MD_DA840

     Cheese - Western U.S.

     Report 16 - Released on April 17, 2019

     In the West, cheese production remains active with plenty of milk going to cheese vats.
     Nonetheless, some processors are attempting to control massive growth in supplies through
     planned output reduction. With demand not as good as they would want to and more milk
     available in the West, cheese production control seems to be one of the best ways to manage
     cheese inventories from building up too much. Cheese sales are reported as a bit mixed. Some
     retailers and restaurant managers are taking more cheese than usual, but others are either
     maintaining their intakes at the same levels or decreasing them. Contractual loads of cheese
     are moving as agreed upon, but additional spot sales are harder to develop despite sellers'
     effort to find new sale outlets. The tenor of the western cheese market is somewhat
     unsettled.

     In the West, wholesale prices were up $.0175 for process, but down $.0050 for cheddar
     block, cuts and Monterey Jack. Swiss cut wholesale prices are unchanged from the previous
     week.

     National Retail Report Dairy ± Cheese Summary
     Advertised Prices at Major Retail Supermarket Outlets ending during the period of 4/12/2019
      to 4/18/2019
     Cheese 8 oz. Blocks                Weighted Average Price
     National                 This Period      Last Week      Last Year
     Organic                     $4.99           $4.99          n.a.
     Conventional                $2.11           $2.26         $2.06

     Regional (Conventional)   Wtd. Ave.          Low           High
     Northwest                   $2.11           $1.99         $2.33
     Southwest                   $2.21           $1.77         $2.50

     Cheese 8 oz. Shred                 Weighted Average Price
     National                 This Period      Last Week      Last Year
     Organic                      n.a.            n.a.          n.a.
     Conventional                $2.14           $2.27         $2.28

     Regional (Conventional)   Wtd. Ave.           Low          High
     Northwest                   $1.99           $1.69         $2.33
     Southwest                   $2.14           $1.77         $2.50
     WHOLESALE SELLING PRICES: DELIVERED
     DOLLARS PER POUND(MIXED LOTS (1000-5000 POUNDS))

     Cheddar 10 pound Cuts               1.9550-2.1750
     Cheddar 40 pound Block              1.7750-2.2175
     Monterey Jack 10 pounds             1.9650-2.1250
     Process American 5 pound Loaf       1.6700-1.9250
     Swiss 6-9 pound Cuts                2.6000-3.0300


     Information for the period April 15 - 19, 2019, issued weekly

     Published by:
     Dairy Market News - Madison, WI
     FLORENCE KONE-GONZALEZ, (608)422-8594
     Email: florence.konegonzalez@usda.gov

     Additional Dairy Market News Information:
     Dairy Market News (DMN) by Phone: (608)422-8602
     DMN Website: https://www.ams.usda.gov/market-news/dairy
     DMN MARS (My Market News): https://mymarketnews.ams.usda.gov/