Tirlán will pay 43.08c/L, including VAT, for January creamery milk supplies at 3.6% butterfat and 3.3% protein.

The co-op today (Tuesday, February 17) said that the January milk price consists of the following:

Base milk price of 35.58c/L (including VAT) which is unchanged from December;
A Seasonality Payment of 7.0c/L (including VAT) which applies to all creamery milk volumes supplied during January that meet quality criteria. This payment also applies to non-contracted volumes from our Autumn Calving and Liquid Milk scheme members;
A Sustainability Action Payment of 0.5c/L (including VAT) to all qualifying suppliers.

Tirlán outlined that the base price, Seasonality Payment and Sustainability Action Payment will "be adjusted to reflect the actual constituents of milk delivered by suppliers".

According to the co-op, the "actual average price" paid by Tirlán for January creamery milk, based on delivered constituents, will be 52.36c/L (including VAT) - this compares to 53.01c/L (including VAT) for December creamery milk.

Tirlán

Tirlán had previously announced its intention to "hold the milk price for January and February supplies" - subject to any unforeseen events.

According to the co-op, today's announcement confirms a milk price of 41.08c/L for February, inclusive of a seasonality bonus payment of 5c/L.

John Murphy, Tirlán's chair: “We are pleased to be in a position to confirm our January milk price as announced last month.

"There has been some welcome stability in the markets, which is a positive development. The board will continue to monitor market developments on a monthly basis.”

The co-op has also confirmed that an unconditional seasonality bonus payment of 5c/L will be paid for any February milk volumes that do not qualify for Liquid Premium or the Autumn Calving Scheme.

The board of Tirlán has agreed that the same rates of seasonality bonus payments will apply in December 2026 (5c/L), January 2027 (7c/L), and February of 2027 (5c/L).

VAT rate

According to Tirlán, this month’s milk payment is based on the reduced VAT Flat Rate Addition, which applies for payments made after January 1, 2026.

In Budget 2026, the government reduced the VAT Flat Rate addition for non-VAT registered farmers from 5.1% to 4.5%.

According to the co-op, based on its VAT-inclusive milk price of 36.08c/L, the base milk price for January and February milk should be reduced by 0.21c/L to adjust for the reduction in the VAT rebate from the government.

However, the board of Tirlán today said it has "decided to absorb this cost in the short-term, but confirmed that it will be reflected in milk pricing from March milk onwards".

Support package

Last December, the co-op had also announced a targeted €5.5 million Dairy Support Package "aimed at supporting milk suppliers through the early stages of the 2026 lactation".

Tirlán has outlined that rebates are available for suppliers who spent at least 5c/L with the co-op in 2025, or who do so in 2026.

As part of this support package, anti-parasitic prescriptions from Tirlán co-op will also be provided free of charge for all of 2026.