Dairy tanker drivers have been overflowing with work as New Zealand's cows produce milk at record levels for early spring.
Fonterra says a warm autumn and a reasonable winter means milk collection is up 13 per cent on average compared to last year.
A spokeswoman says they have reached their normal peak collection amounts three weeks earlier than usual.
The biggest problem so far has been that farmers have had to wait an extra few hours for theirmilk to be picked up, she says.
"It
can be frustrating for them having to wait a few hours, but our first
priority is to pick up their milk," she told NZN on Tuesday.
The
worst-case scenario would be that some milk would have to be dumped if
it wasn't picked up in time, but the spokeswoman said she hadn't heard
of that happening.
Fonterra trade and operations managing director
Gary Romano says it's too early in the season to tell if there is more
milk than usual or if it is just early.
"The extra milk volumes
are putting pressure on the milk collection, manufacturing, and the
supply chain, but weather conditions over the remainder of the season
could see this change again," he said.
"We know some of our
farmers are experiencing disruptions and we are doing everything we can
to minimise the impact on their operations and have a number of
contingencies in place to manage the milk flow."
NZN