GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Switzerland traditionally has a surplus of butter but this month it may be importing 500 kg, for the first time in years.
Stocks fell during the first six months of the year, butter production was down and consumers bought more butter than usual.
The result: the country’s butter industry body has reserved the right to buy butter on the international market.
Production fell in part because of poor pasture conditions – the long, cold and very soggy spring in much of Switzerland meant late pastures for cows. Alpine cows headed for the higher alpine pastures much later than usual.
Swiss dairy cows in the Alps, canton ValaisStocks have been falling since a record high of nearly 48,000 tons was reached in 2010. World exports that year totaled 2 million tons.
Consumption was up during the first half of 2013 in Switzerland in part because a price hike was announced for June, so consumers rushed to buy their own stocks.
Switzerland is traditionally a butter exporter, but it is far behind the leaders, New Zealand, Belgium and The Netherlands. The main importers of butter are France, Germany and Russia.
India is a key player in the world market and from 2006 to 2010 registered the highest sales of butter globally.
It takes 20-25 litres of milk to make 1 kilo of butter, according to SwissMilk, the national dairy board.