EU Dairy Sector Sees Steady Growth In Raw Milk Production In 2024

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

November 21, 2025

EU farms produced an estimated 161.8 million tonnes of raw milk in 2024, a modest increase of 0.9 million tonnes compared to 2023. This figure builds on a decade of steady growth, with production rising by 12.1 million tonnes since 2014, when output was 149.7 million tonnes. According to Eurostat, the trend underlines the resilience and expanding capacity of the EU dairy industry.

Dairy Consumption And Product Diversification

Of the total raw milk output, approximately 150.8 million tonnes were directed to dairies, underpinning the production of a diverse range of fresh and processed dairy products. Notably, much of the milk is allocated to cheese and butter manufacturing. Specifically, 59.9 million tonnes of whole milk, assisted by an additional 17.0 million tonnes of skimmed milk, were transformed into 10.8 million tonnes of cheese. Similarly, 44.2 million tonnes of whole milk facilitated the production of 2.3 million tonnes of butter and other yellow products, generating 41.5 million tonnes of skimmed milk as a by-product.

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Leading National Contributors

Germany emerged as the EU’s largest producer of drinking milk, accountable for 18.8% of overall production and dominating the production of acidified milk products, butter, and cheese with respective shares of 27.1%, 20.6%, and 22.5%. Spain and France follow closely, with Spain contributing 15.2% and France 12.7% to the production of drinking milk. France also holds significant positions in the butter (17.2%) and cheese (17.8%) segments.

Niche Production And Strategic Specialization: The Case Of Cyprus

Cyprus remains a minor player within the EU dairy sector. Its modest agricultural base, constrained pastureland, and limited herd sizes yield relatively low production volumes—recording 56,310 tonnes for drinking milk, 12,440 tonnes for acidified milk products such as yoghurt, 0.050 tonnes for butter, and 42,550 tonnes for cheese. However, the island’s strategic focus on high-value cheese production, particularly halloumi, a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) product, underscores its competitive niche in the market. With a high proportion of available milk being allocated to cheese, Cyprus exemplifies how specialization can drive export success, even amid constrained production capacities.

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Blood Proteins May Signal Prostate Cancer Risk More Than 15 Years Before Diagnosis

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

October 27, 2026

Distinctive proteins in men’s blood may offer clues to prostate cancer risk more than 15 years before a diagnosis, according to research from the University of Oxford. The findings could help scientists better understand why some prostate cancers become aggressive while others grow slowly and never cause serious harm.

Researchers analyzed blood samples from 2,555 men collected between 1992 and 2000. Of those participants, 982 were later diagnosed with prostate cancer; the remaining 1,573 served as a comparison group. The team measured more than 6,000 proteins in the samples, which had been collected years—and, in some cases, more than 15 years—before diagnosis.

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Protein Patterns Were Linked To Different Risks

The analysis identified proteins associated with prostate cancer risk overall, as well as proteins linked specifically to more aggressive or fast-growing forms of the disease. Higher levels of certain immune-system proteins, including GZMK and ANXA2, were associated with a lower long-term risk.

“Finding proteins linked to known prostate cancer driver genes in blood collected years before diagnosis gives us new insights into the earliest stages of the disease,” said Karl Smith-Byrne, the study’s corresponding author at Oxford.

The results, published in European Urology, are significant because prostate cancer is not a single, uniform disease. Many tumors grow slowly and may never threaten a patient’s health, while others progress rapidly and can be life-threatening. A clearer way to distinguish between these outcomes could eventually help improve how clinicians assess risk.

Promising Findings, Not A Screening Test

The researchers stressed that the protein patterns are not ready to be used as a screening test. The associations need further validation before they can inform clinical decisions, and the study does not establish that the proteins cause cancer or that measuring them can predict an individual’s outcome.

“Ultimately, we hope this will help us understand the biology of aggressive prostate cancer and identify markers that could improve how we assess risk in the future,” said first author Zhe Huang, a postdoctoral epidemiologist at Oxford Population Health.

Research Could Point To New Prevention Strategies

Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among men in the European Union and the second most common worldwide, after lung cancer. In the EU, approximately 330,000 cases are diagnosed and 75,000 men die from the disease each year.

By identifying biological signals that appear long before diagnosis, the research may help scientists investigate the pathways involved in aggressive disease. Smith-Byrne said that, alongside existing and future genetic evidence, the findings could help reveal pathways that might ultimately be targeted to prevent aggressive prostate cancer.

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