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Farm Bill Fight Spills into May; Final Package Nears Completion
President Bush last Friday signed yet another short-term extension of the 2002 Farm Bill, giving congressional negotiators until May 16th to complete work on the long-awaited 2008 Farm Bill.
Last week, congressional conferees came to terms on many of the outstanding items in need of resolution. While the final conference report has yet to be released, NMPF is optimistic that the many items in the organization’s Farm Bill package, ranging from enhanced conservation and environment funding, to improvements in the dairy Price Support program, have been addressed.
House and Senate negotiators appear to have reached an accord on another item relevant to our dairy package: the MILC program, which is expected to contain a feed cost adjuster. Another important item still unresolved is the fate of the proposal to apply the domestic dairy checkoff to imports. That issue is still in play, despite all-out attempts by importers, foreign governments and processors to block it.
President Bush has been critical of the bill, particularly in the area of payment limitations – another issue still under negotiation – but NMPF President and CEO Jerry Kozak said that “we are hopeful he will sign it when all is said and done.”
NMPF Supports Ban on Nonambulatory Animals in the Food Supply
As part of a joint statement with the American Meat Institute and the National Meat Association, NMPF announced on April 24 that it believed that USDA should not allow any nonambulatory, or downer, cattle into the nation’s food supply.
The message came in response to a citizen petition filed by the three organizations in which they urged USDA to eliminate a regulation where veterinarians are currently allowed to re-inspect an animal that becomes nonambulatory after initially passing ante-mortem inspection.
When asked about the issue, NMPF President & CEO Jerry Kozak stated: “The reality is that our meat supply is extremely safe, but the entire livestock chain runs the risk of losing consumer confidence if the perception exists that animals which may be unhealthy are allowed to be processed into food for the public.”
The controversy of downer cattle in the food supply surfaced earlier this year when abuse at a meat-packing plant in California was caught on tape.
NMPF is developing educational materials for dairy farmers to help reinforce good cattle care practices. The materials are expected to be published early this summer.
National Commission Faults Conventional Agriculture for Impact on Human, Animal Health
After a two-year investigative process, the Pew Commission on Industrial Food Animal Production held a news conference last week in Washington to unveil its findings and offer recommendations to change how animal proteins are produced (the full report can be found here). The final report said that “industrial farm animal production” poses risks to the human and animal health, and to the environment.
NMPF had monitored the commission’s work, and had provided a variety of technical information to the commission’s staff and members, and in 2006 arranged for them to visit a dairy in California. Like many of the other livestock sectors examined by the commission, dairy received some criticism for certain of its approaches to milk production, although the commission’s broad final recommendations were a mixed bag.
Two of them, in fact, are ones that NMPF supports: the need for a national animal ID system to facilitate food traceability, and another recommendation about the general need for more funding into animal research. Several of the other recommendations don’t really apply to dairy, and some we will challenge. The only dairy-specific critique in the executive summary of the report was of tail docking. NMPF did join a coalition of other agriculture groups in issuing a statement pointing out how the commission’s process may have been skewed by its make-up, and by how it process information.
NMPF will be monitoring the commission’s future actions, particularly on Capitol Hill, to ensure that any recommendations about the dairy industry are credibly countered.
FDA Announces New Regulations on BSE Feed Ban Rule
Last month, FDA finalized regulations on the exclusion of Specified Risk Materials (SRM) from all feed. This enhanced FDA BSE Feed Ban Rule, originally proposed in 2005, strengthens existing safeguards designed to help prevent the spread of BSE in U.S. cattle and will take effect on April 27, 2009.
FDA estimates that the collection of dead cows and calves from farms and slaughter facilities will decrease by 29% to 45%, due to anticipated changes in the rendering industry. FDA advises that "Dead animals no longer collected should be disposed of in an environmentally and legally acceptable manner." The agency indicated it will work with the livestock industry to identify appropriate manners of carcass disposal.
NMPF has strongly encouraged FDA to have an SRM disposal plan accompanying the final FDA BSE Feed Ban rule, because it may significantly reduce the income from dairy slaughter animals over 30 months of age or significantly increase the costs to producers for dead stock recovery. NMPF has also asked FDA to provide guidance on disposal options.
Since both the removal of SRMs for animals over 30 months of age, and dead stock disposal costs for animals of any age, may be significant and may be transferred back to the producer level, NMPF will work with FDA and USDA to develop a comprehensive SRM disposal plan that will:
- Minimize the potential significant economic impact to dairy producers;
- Maintain on-farm dead stock recovery by the rendering industry to facilitate animal disease surveillance which should be coupled to the National Animal Identification System (NAIS);
- Provide for safe and economical disposal and/or utilization options for rendered SRM's which will be excluded from the feed supply; and
- Discourage dead stock disposal options which pose either environmental or public health concerns.
The entire FDA regulation is available in the Federal Register.
NMPF Challenges Potential Changes in Clean Water Act
Later this week, NMPF will send a letter to Chairman James Oberstar and Ranking Member John Mica of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure to address an immediate concern for the dairy industry over potential changes in the Clean Water Act (CWA). The changes could expand federal jurisdiction to virtually all wet areas in the United States.
Although NMPF supports the main objectives on water quality of the CWA, any changes enacted by Congress that alter the manner in which all waters are treated could usher in an unnecessary expansion of this law, thereby hurting all land owners. As the current law is written, only navigable waters are subject to federal jurisdiction. NMPF believes an attempt by the federal government to control areas such as ditches, grass waterways, and other interstate waters could prove most onerous for dairy farmers. As such, those areas should be left for the jurisdiction of state and local authorities, not the Environmental Protection Agency.
The letter will highlight four points that NMPF feels any Congressional action on the CWA must contain:
- Maintain the term "navigable waters";
- Maintain all regulatory exemptions such as prior converted cropland and waste treatment systems;
- Eliminate the reference to "activities" affecting waters; and
- Eliminate the overbroad reference to "all intrastate waters" as water of the United States.
Following submission of this letter, member cooperatives will be requested to submit similar or supporting comments.
Climate Change Legislation Draws Attention from Agricultural Groups
As part of the on-going efforts on climate change, NMPF has joined several other agriculture organizations in sending a letter to Chairwoman Barbara Boxer and Ranking Member James Inhofe of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee regarding America's Climate Security Act of 2007. The purpose of the letter is to inform the committee about agriculture's important role in the upcoming Climate Change legislation.
This legislation has been introduced by Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Senator John Warner (R-VA). A similar House version is expected to be introduced in the near future.
Climate Change legislation will be discussed on the floor this summer and will focus on various ways to reduce green house gas emissions in the U.S. Businesses that emit large amounts of green house gases will be required to reduce emissions and/or purchase offsets from entities that are removing emissions from the air. Since it is not regulated under the proposed legislation, agriculture will have an important role to play in the offset market. As an unregulated entity, agriculture will not be required to reduce emissions, but will have the ability to sell credits where offsets can be measured, such as with the case of methane digesters on dairy farms.
NMPF will continue to work with other agricultural organizations to maintain a favorable legislative position on these issues. Additional information regarding this legislation will be forwarded to the membership as it becomes available.
South Korea Opens Market for U.S. Beef Imports
In April, South Korea announced that it would be fully opening its market to U.S. beef. Korea has long had restrictions on U.S. beef imports due to the U.S. cases of BSE. Korea's refusal to abide by international guidelines and accept U.S. beef had prompted the Bush Administration and several key members of Congress to refuse to consider the U.S. -Korea FTA until Korea changed its import regulations.
Now that Korea has taken this important step forward, the Administration plans to begin efforts in the coming months to push for Congressional passage of the Korean FTA. This FTA would offer sizable new export opportunities for the U.S. dairy industry, resulting in an average annual benefit to producers of approximately $380 million over the agreement's implementation period.
Colombian Free Trade Agreement Delayed Indefinitely
The prospects for the Colombia Free Trade Agreement have dimmed now that congressional consideration of the measure has been postponed. The Bush Administration sent implementing legislation on the FTA to Congress last month, starting the clock running on Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), which requires a vote on an FTA within 90 days after legislation on it is received by Congress.
Democratic congressional leadership objected to this move, as they did not want to open the agreement up for consideration at this time. In reaction, the House voted to change the TPA law in order to remove the 90 day timetable limitation on the Colombia FTA. With this change, Congress can now put off consideration of the agreement, and a vote on it, until whatever later date at which it decides to take up the legislation.
NMPF supports the Colombia FTA, as it offers the prospect for additional new avenues for U.S. dairy exports and is estimated to result in an average annual benefit to producers of approximately $25 million over the agreement's implementation period.
USDEC/CWT Trade Mission Heads to the Far East
The objective of CWT’s Export Assistance Strategic Business Plan is to support proactive development of sustainable export markets for U.S. cheese, butterfat and whole milk powder by leveraging farmer-funded efforts in both CWT export assistance and USDEC market development programs.
Towards that end, the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) has identified target markets in which to pursue the sustainable market development for cheese, butterfat and whole milk powder. Japan, South Korea, Algeria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Australia are targeted for commodity cheese sales, while Russia, Mexico, Egypt and China are target markets for butterfat and whole milk powder efforts.
In May, representatives from three CWT member cooperatives will be participating in a trade mission to the Far East, organized by USDEC, to meet with potential cheese customers in Japan and South Korea. Participants will also tour grocery stores and processing facilities to get a better understanding of customer needs in those two countries.
In-country support for the trade mission is being provided by USDEC and participating CWT members are responsible for their travel expenses.
NMPF Forms Sustainability Task Force
In order to ensure that dairy products - and dairy producers - are well-positioned in the marketplace as retailers and consumers focus more on the sustainability of the food supply, NMPF has formed a task force to address the environmental and policy aspects of sustainability.
Many corporations and industries are devoting increased marketing resources to position themselves as proponents of what is still the loosely-defined concept of sustainability. In particular, Wal-Mart has asked its fluid milk suppliers that they assess the carbon footprint of packaged milk, and then work for ways to reduce that footprint across the distribution chain, from grass to glass.
NMPF will be working with Dairy Management Inc. and the International Dairy Foods Association to identify key supply-chain innovations that, as part of a comprehensive sustainability effort, can help position dairy as a preferred product among the rapidly increasing number of socially-conscious consumers.
These focus areas include identifying opportunities to reduce energy consumption and costs in milk production and processing, as well as boost on-farm income opportunities in emerging "green" energy markets.
NMPF's Sustainability Task Force will include the organization's officers, along with certain NMPF delegates and other producers who can represent the broader dairy producer community.
Associate Member Focus: Western United Dairymen
Western United Dairymen (WUD) is a voluntary membership organization representing more than 60% of the milk produced in California.
WUD’s mission is to promote sound legislative and administrative policies and programs for the profitability of the industry and the welfare of the consumers by striving always to develop concepts for the general welfare and longevity of dairy producers, while maintaining the strong, positive public image of the dairy farmers.
WUD’s contact is Michael March, Chief Executive Officer, who can be reached at 209-527-6453 or by email. To learn more about WUD, please visit their website.
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