Why milk barely travels but cheese crosses the world
What this tab covers How it flows between countries: the largest bilateral trade routes drawn on a world map, 2024 UN Comtrade export and import values with the top exporters and importers by share, plus shipping routes, chokepoints and trade restrictions.
Milk itself barely crosses borders; trade is in products. Comtrade values 2024 exports at $43.8 billion for cheese (HS 0406), $20.2 billion for milk powders (HS 0402) and $12.7 billion for butter (HS 0405). New Zealand leads powders (29.3%) and butter (22.2%). Cheese exports are European, led by Germany (14.9%), Italy and the Netherlands. China is the top powder importer (13.6%), with Algeria second, while cheese and butter imports are dominated by EU neighbours trading with each other. Dairy is heavily protected by tariffs and quotas in many importing countries.
Where it is exported from and imported to, 2024
Chart: World map of the largest trade flows
Exporter (size = share of world exports) Importer (share of world imports) Shipping chokepoint UN Comtrade 2024. Bubbles: shares of reported world exports and imports for the main traded form. Country-to-country route lines are not available for this commodity yet. Hover a circle for values.
Milk powder · HS 0402
World exports 2024 $20.2 bn sum of 40 reporting countries World imports 2024 $17.4 bn sum of 40 reporting countries Top exporters, share of value New Zealand 29.3% United States 10.7% Netherlands 8.4% Germany 7.5% France 5.5% Belgium 5% Top importers, share of value China 13.6% Algeria 8.1% Mexico 5.8% Saudi Arabia 5.2% Indonesia 4.9% Netherlands 4.1%
Butter · HS 0405
World exports 2024 $12.7 bn sum of 40 reporting countries World imports 2024 $11.3 bn sum of 40 reporting countries Top exporters, share of value New Zealand 22.2% Netherlands 15.5% Ireland 14.4% Germany 8.1% Belgium 8.1% France 7.7% Top importers, share of value France 15% China 8.4% Germany 7.6% Netherlands 7.5% United States 7.3% Belgium 6.2%
Cheese · HS 0406
World exports 2024 $43.8 bn sum of 40 reporting countries World imports 2024 $39.1 bn sum of 40 reporting countries Top exporters, share of value Germany 14.9% Italy 13.3% Netherlands 13.2% France 9.8% United States 5.6% Denmark 5.2% Top importers, share of value Germany 14.8% France 8.1% Italy 7.4% United Kingdom 6.7% Netherlands 5.6% Spain 5.1% UN Comtrade, reporter declarations to the world, US$. Exports and imports are reported separately, so totals differ. Re-exporting hubs (Netherlands, Singapore, Switzerland, UAE) can appear large.