World Whole Fresh Milk Production And Yield By Species

Milk is a significant source of dietary energy, high-quality protein, and micro-nutrients (vitamins and minerals). Besides, the bioavailability of fat-soluble vitamins and calcium is high compared with the newly trending plant-based alternatives.
Milk’s unique nutritional profile explains why it plays a particularly important role in human nutrition in developing countries where the diets of malnourished people frequently lack access to micro-nutrient dense foods. Moreover, even in developed countries, milk still remains the best option contributing to correct child nutrition and growth.

Mainly derived from cows, the milk that the human population regularly consumes is produced by a range of animal species. The production of milk from minor species, such as buffalo, goat, sheep, and camel, has the potential to contribute to food security, health and nutrition, and income generation for farmers.
Considering different species of milking animals, what’s a realistic photograph of the global whole fresh milk production?

Following are some infographic highlights based on the latest official FAO data accessible from the FAOSTATdatabase.
After importing 6,706 entries between 2013 and 2017 on Excel spreadsheet and filtered the data to sort them in a structured way to ease understanding, 4 types of infographics were carved out to zero in on world milk production:

• World Whole Fresh Milk Production by Species

• World Whole Fresh Milk Yield by Species

• Whole Fresh Cow’s Milk Production by Continent

• Top 5 Fresh Cow’s Milk Producing Countries

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World Whole Fresh Milk Production by Species

About 97% of the total world milk production depends on two species: cow and buffalo. A scant 3% is divided between goat, sheep, and camel:

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World Whole Fresh Milk Yield by Species

Yield (hg/An), defined as a production of 100 grams (hectogram) of milk for each animal head, presents (without surprise) the highest values for the dominant milking species in intensive farming, cow. The yielding curve among the various milking species between 2013 and 2017 increases only for cow and its cousin buffalo:

The yields in milk production for the other three species (goat, sheep, and camel) are discontinuous, when not in sharp decline:

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Whole Fresh Cow’s Milk Production by Continent

(related with)

Top 5 Fresh Cow’s Milk Producing Countries

Whole Fresh Cow’s Milk Production is the only one equally split between the most populated continents (Europe, Asia, and the Americas):

The United States and India are the giants of global cow’s milk production, with their staggering 100 million and 80 million tons per year, respectively:

Buffalo’s milk production is nearly all concentrated in Asia, where India dominates the scene, boasting a production that mirrors cow’s (80 million tons):

India is also the leading producer of goat’s milk, along with Bangladesh and Pakistan, among the top 5 in the yellow continent. The rest is concentrated between Africa (Sudan) and Europe (France).

With the Asian continent leading even sheep’s milk production, this time numbers appear more heterogeneously divided, with Turkey, China, and Syria among the top 5. Greece and Romania dominate in Europe, while, in the remaining 23% African slice, no country particularly stands out among the top 5 producers.

Africa wins as the continent where nearly the total production of camel milk (91%) takes place, with Somalia, Kenya, Mali, and Ethiopia among the top 5. The remaining 9% is, without surprise, all merit of the Middle-East, with Saudi Arabia the only queen of the Asian continent among the top 5 world camel milk-producing countries.

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Even if these data just help to quantify world milk production, one thing appears evident above all. The overall production of milk in the world concerns countries where a milk-based economy still thrives for bringing remarkable subsistence and nutrition.

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Did you know these data on world milk production?