Dairy demand seen remaining robust in Philippines

Dalilah Ghazalay, US Dairy Export Council regional director in Southeast Asia

BANGKOK, Thailand—Despite short-term market challenges, the United States expects robust dairy demand in the Philippines and Southeast Asia due to their young population, rising incomes and positive economic outlook.

“Even though everyone was impacted by the inflation and the worries of many other macro factors that impact the supply chain, the demand for dairy remains robust,” Dalilah Ghazalay, US Dairy Export Council’s (USDEC) regional director in Southeast Asia, told the Inquirer in an interview.

Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, particularly the Israel-Iran conflict, have led to vessel rerouting and route closures, significantly disrupting global supply chains, including dairy shipments.

However, Ghazalay said these temporary market setbacks would not hamper the flow of dairy ingredients into the region, noting the strong demand for these commodities.

“I consider them as temporary market setbacks at the moment. The market will correct itself… generally because there is a need for dairy ingredients in Southeast Asia in general. It’s not going to stop the inflow of imports,” Ghazalay said.

“We are optimistic about the general increase of dairy ingredients … not just in the Philippines specifically, but you see that trend in Southeast Asia,” she added.

Ghazalay said the projected gross domestic production growth of 4.7 percent in Southeast Asia this year supported their optimistic view of dairy exports to the region.

She underscored the region’s young and dynamic population, the increase in incomes, population growth and the growing preference to incorporate dairy into their diet.

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Trade ties with United States

In the case of the Philippines, Ghazalay said the “very friendly” trade relations between both countries as well as Filipinos’ trust in US-approved food products should foster trade and collaboration in the dairy industry.

The US is the leading source of imported dairy in 2024, accounting for 30 percent of the market, followed by New Zealand with 20.7 percent and Belgium with 4.8 percent, data from the National Dairy Authority showed.

Data provided by the USDEC noted that dairy exports to Southeast Asia amounted to $1.02 billion in 2024, with the Philippines emerging as the top destination of US dairy products.

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America exported $364.48 million worth of dairy products to the archipelago in the past year, equivalent to 138,776 MT.

Although the group did not provide comparative data, it said US dairy shipments to the Philippines had grown by 48 percent growth between 2015 and 2024.

The US Department of Agriculture said in its report last October that dairy imports were projected to reach 3.1 million MT in liquid milk equivalent in 2025, up by 1.6 percent from 3.05 million MT in 2024.

The Philippines is almost entirely dependent on imports as local production can only support around 1 percent of its dairy requirements.

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