It may have been a ''hellishly tough month'' for Fonterra but the co-operative's forecast milk price underlines that the fundamentals of the New Zealand dairy industry remain strong, Federated Farmers dairy chairman Willy Leferink says.
Last week, the co-operative revised its 2013-14 season forecast to $7.80, up 30c from the previous forecast late last month.
New Zealanders should ''rejoice'' that the immediate financial damage from the recall and market access issues would not dent the economy, Mr Leferink said.
''With an eye to the future, we've got to accept that we cannot afford a repeat of this month's problems, but right now, this confidence in the dairy industry is a huge relief.
''From the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to GlobalDairyTrade, the markets have delivered their own verdict.
''However, we still have a lot of bridge-building to do and a heck of a lot of things to learn but learn them we will. We will be back better because we have to be,'' he said.
The prices for New Zealand's dairy exports reflected the reality that the amount of surplus milk for global export remained ''wafer thin''.
Mr Leferink pointed out that it was still a forecast and it was also some way off from being ''in the bank'', so farmers needed to budget conservatively to reduce debt that had built up over last season's drought.
Prof William Bailey, from the department of agriculture at Western Illinois University, described Fonterra's decision to revise its forecast, just one month after its previous announcement, as ''surprising''.
While the increase would provide a boost to confidence in the New Zealand dairy sector, a different type of risk was ''on the edge of the radar'', he said.
Markets in the Middle East, including Iran, an important Fonterra customer, could be affected by the impact of any outside military intervention in Syria, he said.
Fonterra Shareholders Council chairman Ian Brown urged farmers to continue to show prudence in their financial planning, given the volatility of the market.
Westland Milk Products has revised its 2013-14 forecast payout to a range of $7.60-8 kg ms with a new advance rate of $5 kg ms.
Federated Farmers West Coast dairy chairman Richard Reynolds said farmers on the coast were ''counting down'' to September 20 when they got the advance.
''After the rare West Coast drought this year, we've got more than an overdraft to start clearing.
''Even if the forecast sticks, it will still be a whole year after that before we get the full payment.
"As I am often reminded, there's a heck of lot of water to go under the bridge, not to mention four seasons,'' he said.