Cream shortage leading to low butter supply

Butter producers struggling to meet demand

WESTBY, Wis. (WKBT) — A shortage of cream is slowing down butter production, and that means you may be paying more for it soon.

Nordic Creamery in Westby says a number of factors are leading to the cream shortage, like a late start to ice cream production and a higher demand for whole milk — that’s making it hard for them to meet the demand for butter.

Manager Al Bekkum says it’s a trend that they’ve seen for awhile now.

“Well, we’ve been seeing kind of a, uh, kind of a tight run on butter for us for the last couple years now. It’s really gotten worse and worse all the time it seems like,” said Bekkum.

Demand for butter is growing as more consumers opt for natural products instead of margarine. The Creamery says demand is higher in the summer months and right before the holidays.