Dairy producers leverage genetics to optimise milk composition for processing - CoBank
Historic gains enable more cheese and butter production
2 April 2025
3 minute read
By: Genetic improvements within the US dairy herd are fuelling historic gains in key milk components needed to produce cheese, butter and a variety of other popular dairy foods, according to a recent report from CoBank. While US fluid milk production has remained relatively flat in recent years, butterfat and protein levels within the nation’s milk supply are growing at a record pace as more producers are employing genetics to optimise milk composition.
The steady upswing in milk components is paying dividends for dairy producers and positioning dairy processors for continued growth. Over 80% of the US milk supply goes into manufactured dairy products that rely on butterfat and protein content. Demand for those two key milk components is rising as $8 billion of new dairy processing capacity is slated to come online through 2027.
According to new report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange, the historic pace of change in US milk composition is poised to continue as genetic gains and market incentives will drive butterfat and protein production higher for the foreseeable future.
“As dairy farmers leverage their genetics programs to select animals for traits associated with milk component levels, there is untapped potential for how high butterfat and protein percentages can go,” said Corey Geiger, lead dairy economist with CoBank. “And there’s a clear financial incentive for producers given that multiple component pricing programs place nearly 90% of the milk check value on butterfat and protein.”
Butterfat levels in US milk have reached record highs for the past four consecutive years. In 2024, butterfat levels averaged 4.23% nationally, based on data from USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. Protein content in milk has also been climbing, with new consecutive yearly records posted from 2016 to 2024. The average protein content in US milk reached 3.29% in 2024, according to Federal Milk Marketing Order data.
The surge in butterfat and protein levels has far outpaced the more modest increase in overall milk production over the past 15 years. From 2001 to 2010, milk, butterfat and protein production, on a per-pound basis, all improved in a rather tight window ranging from 13.8% to 15.4%. Since then, growth rates for milk and milk components have decoupled. From 2011 to 2024, milk production increased 15.9% while protein climbed 23.6% and butterfat increased 30.2%.
The game-changing story for the upward movement in milk components is genomics. The predictive power of genomic testing comes from comparing an individual animal’s DNA sample to the overall population. Those comparisons enable producers to evaluate animals and make breeding decisions based on a variety of production and health traits.
“Selecting animals for highly heritable traits and having a market incentive to do so has formed a strong foundation for dairy producers to develop their herds to produce more butterfat and protein,” said Geiger. “Genetics should continue to gain momentum in the coming years, and growing volumes of milk components will further supply the necessary ingredients for dairy processors.”
