MD_DA840 Cheese - Western U.S. Report 14 - Released on April 07, 2021 In the West, demand for retail cheese has held steady this week. Demand for cheese for food service is trending upwards with some contacts reporting that buyers are purchasing further out to hedge against price increases. As more children are returning to full-time in-person schooling, demand for dairy has been increasing. Plenty of milk is available and cheese producers are running at or near capacity. Cheese inventories are mixed. There is some availability for spot purchasers, while some cheese is committed to near-term contract fulfillment. Contacts report that they can find cheese when necessary, but that specific varieties are harder to come by. WESTERN WHOLESALE PRICE ADJUSTMENTS In the West, wholesale prices are up $.0400 for process, and up $.0400 for cheddar block, cuts and Monterey Jack. Swiss cut wholesale prices are up $.0350 from the previous week. WHOLESALE SELLING PRICES: DELIVERED DOLLARS PER POUND(MIXED LOTS (1000-5000 POUNDS)) Cheddar 10 pound Cuts 2.0825-2.2825 Cheddar 40 pound Block 1.8350-2.3250 Monterey Jack 10 pounds 2.0700-2.3450 Process American 5 pound Loaf 1.5900-1.8450 Swiss 6-9 pound Cuts 3.0600-3.4900 Information for the period April 5 - 9, 2021, issued weekly Secondary Sourced Information: DAIRY PRODUCTS REPORT – CHEESE SUMMARY Released April 1, 2021, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Cheese Production – United States: February 2020 and 2021 Monthly Production (1000 pounds) Percent Change from Total Cheese 1 FEB JAN FEB FEB JAN Region 2020 2021 2021 2020 2021 United States 1,031,672 1,135,567 1,043,188 1.1 -8.1 Atlantic 119,376 132,703 128,367 7.5 -3.3 Central 482,191 534,548 495,472 2.8 -7.3 West 430,105 468,316 419,349 -2.5 -10.5 Monthly Production (1000 pounds) Percent Change from American Cheese 2 FEB JAN FEB FEB JAN Region 2020 2021 2021 2020 2021 United States 418,605 474,315 425,392 1.6 -10.3 Atlantic 26,957 31,303 27,380 1.6 -12.5 Central 212,689 245,240 224,711 5.7 -8.4 West 178,959 197,772 173,301 -3.2 -12.4 Monthly Production (1000 pounds) Percent Change from Italian Cheese FEB JAN FEB FEB JAN Region 2020 2021 2021 2020 2021 United States 448,190 481,029 444,311 -0.9 -7.6 Atlantic 56,208 60,006 56,952 1.3 -5.1 Central 184,200 195,688 184,861 0.4 -5.5 West 207,782 225,335 202,498 -2.5 -10.1 Cheese Production – Cumulative Production January - February Cumulative Production Percent Change (1000 pounds) from Cheese Type 2020 2021 2020 Total cheese 1 2,142,187 2,178,755 1.7 American Cheese 2 856,056 899,707 5.1 Italian Cheese 933,588 925,340 -0.9 1/ Excludes cottage cheese. 2/ Includes cheddar, colby, washed curd, stirred curd, Monterey and jack. CME GROUP MONTHLY AVERAGES The CME Group March 2021 monthly average price for barrels, $1.4811, is up from the February 2021 monthly average price of $1.4442, and up from the monthly average of a year ago, $1.4399. The March average price for blocks, $1.7362, is up from the February 2021 monthly average of $1.5821, but down from the monthly average of a year ago, $1.7550. CME CLOSE In CME Group trading Wednesday, barrels closed at $1.5800, compared to the weekly average price of $1.4888 from last week. Blocks closed at $1.8000, compared to the weekly average price of $1.7519 from last week. Published by: Dairy Market News - Madison, WI ROMAN CARAMAN, (608) 422-8953 Email: roman.caraman@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