Canadians could soon be paying more for dairy products
Buying dairy products in Canada could get a little pricier.
The Canadian Dairy Commission (CDC) will be hiking the price of milk next month.
Starting Feb. 1, 2026, farmgate milk prices will increase by 2.3 per cent. This hike comes after the CDC conducted its annual review of farmgate milk prices in October. The Commission considers dairy farmers’ costs of production as well as the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
“Although Canada’s inflation rate stayed within the target range throughout 2024, producers faced ongoing financial challenges due to higher animal feed and labour costs,” shared CDC Chair Jennifer Hayes in an announcement in October.
2026 increase to farmgate milk price aligned with inflation.https://t.co/VKXlKGDQdr pic.twitter.com/BIrDCOTVQi
â Canadian Dairy Commission (@CDC_Dairy) October 31, 2025
She said the rise in the farmgate price of milk in 2026 aligns with inflation and captures the increase in the cost of producing milk.
According to the CDC, the price hike will result in an increase in the cost of milk used to make dairy products such as milk, cream, yogurt, cheese, and butter for retailers and restaurants. According to the CDC, the 2.4 per cent increase translates to over two cents per litre of milk sold to processors to produce finished dairy products.
Lamont Smalls/Shutterstock
So how will this affect prices in the grocery aisles?
“The net impact of these increases on the final cost of dairy products is unknown since prices are also influenced by incremental factors further along the supply chain, such as labour, transportation, distribution, and packaging costs,” noted the Commission. “A change in price paid to farmers for their milk does not necessarily translate to a similar consumer price change.”
The CDC explained that regulating the price of milk is one of the elements of the supply management system for dairy. However, this only applies to the price that milk farmers get.
“With the exception of fluid milk in some provinces, the retail price of dairy products is not regulated in Canada. After the milk leaves the farm, it enters the market where supply, demand and other factors influence the price,” it stated.
In 2025, the inflation rate for dairy products was 2.7 per cent, a rate similar to the overall food category, which increased by 2.5 per cent.
The CDC last increased farmgate milk prices by 2.2 per cent in 2023.