NMPF Board Adopts Comprehensive Framework for Farm Bill

The NMPF Board of Directors has endorsed a comprehensive dairy policy package for the 2007 Farm Bill. The NMPF proposal, approved at the NMPF Board meeting March 6th, calls for significant improvements in current federal farm programs, while also featuring some new elements.

"After a year of discussion and deliberation, I am pleased that our members have come together to support dairy farms of all sizes in all regions of the country, building on the policies that work now, while considering new paths as well," said Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of NMPF.

The NMPF proposal calls for changes in the present milk price support program in order to make it more predictable and effective. For the first time, NMPF also is endorsing a milk producer security program that would provide payments directly to dairy farmers.

The plan also includes new or expanded programs to address energy, environment, conservation, animal health, nutrition, trade, risk management and other important issues. A summary of the proposal can be found here at the NMPF website.

"Our Board recognized that because dairy farming today is a diverse, multi-faceted business, so, too, must our farm programs acknowledge the needs of that diversity," said Kozak. "We want a wide-ranging program that provides the best possible support for dairy producers, while recognizing federal budgetary limitations and international trade constraints."

The NMPF proposal's change in the milk price support program would shift it from a program that supports the price of milk, to one that explicitly supports the price of specific dairy products that USDA would purchase at established prices. Such a change would provide a firmer safety net under farm-level prices, while making the program easier to administer, Kozak said.

The proposed milk producer security program is designed to provide income protection and consistency to producers, who have been whipsawed recently by rising volatility in farm production costs -- from more expensive fuels, to record-high animal feedstock prices.

NMPF is also proposing initiatives to encourage increased use of on-farm methane digesters and other technologies that can produce renewable energy and improve soil, air and water quality. In addition to other environmental and conservation programs the proposal also addresses nutrition, animal health, and public health and safety initiatives, including the continued support for controlling Johne's disease and Bovine Tuberculosis.

NMPF also supports increased funding for USDA's Market Access Program (MAP) and the Foreign Market Development (FMD) program, the reauthorization of the Dairy Export Incentive Program (DEIP), and the final implementation of the dairy promotion checkoff to imported dairy products - a provision passed by Congress in the 2002 farm bill that was never put in place.

NMPF is also supporting improved risk management tools for farmers in the form of a new forward contracting provision for milk in Classes II, III and IV.

"Taken together, this all-inclusive package of policy initiatives will help ensure that the nation's milk producers remain a viable and vibrant part of the American economy," Kozak said. "We also believe that this approach improves on the equitability and predictability of our farm programs."

CWT Accepts 343 Herd Retirement Bids Totaling Over 1 Billion Pounds of Milk

The next herd retirement effort conducted by Cooperatives Working Together will remove more than one billion pounds of milk, or 0.6% of the nation's dairy supply, in an effort to help strengthen and stabilize farm-level milk prices. USDA projects a 2.3 billion pound increase in milk production for 2007 and this action by CWT effectively reduces that projection by 45 percent.

CWT announced today that it is tentatively accepting 343 bids from 39 states, representing 54,000 cows which produced 1.03 billion pounds of milk last year. Beginning the week of March 19th, CWT auditors will begin visiting those farms to check their milk production records, inspect the herds, and tag each of the cows for slaughter. All farmers will be notified no later than April 15th as to whether their bids were accepted.

A total of 1,397 bids were submitted to CWT in this round, a larger sum than the combined number of bids submitted in rounds 2 in 2004 (736 bids) and 3 in 2005 (651 bids). Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of NMPF, which administers CWT, said that the response by so many bidders was an indication that the timing was right for this retirement effort.

"The combination of economic indicators that we've been monitoring told us that this was the right time to act," Kozak said. "As a result of the strong response to this next round, we were able to select bids at a much lower cost per hundred pounds of milk removed, and spend less of our overall budget, than we had anticipated. This will provide more funding going forward for future herd retirements, and for our very active export assistance program."

"The next step is for our field auditors to visit each farm to verify the accuracy of the information submitted during the bidding process," said Walt Wosje, Chief Operating Officer of CWT. "On-farm audits are critical to ensure the integrity of the program as we go forward." Farmers must send their animals directly to slaughter shortly after the auditing process on their farm is complete, Wosje said.

Wosje also said that the program again applied its regional safeguard limits, so that no region of the country will suffer a disproportionate loss of milk supplies. Under CWT's guidelines, safeguard thresholds have been established for five separate regions of the country, limiting the total milk withdrawals possible in each. The only safeguard limit reached was in Region 2, the Southeast. The two Western regions will contribute 68% of the milk removed in this round - a proportion similar to previous rounds.

Kozak noted that the average herd size, and average milk output per cow, for this round's accepted bids were similar to national averages. He said that further bid information, including the average price of accepted bids, won't be released until all the on-farm visits have been completed. The total number of bids accepted by region in this round includes:

NMPF Opposes Opening Canadian Border to Breeding Animals

The National Milk Producers Federation, in comments submitted March 9th to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is opposing the resumption of cattle exports from Canada for breeding or herd replacement purposes.

Due to ongoing concerns about the effectiveness in Canada of the 10 years-old ban on feeding mammalian tissues to cows - the key firewall intended to prevent the spread of BSE, or mad cow disease - NMPF told the USDA that it would be imprudent to allow live animal traffic to resume. USDA is currently considering reopening the U.S. border to animals born after March 1999 for any use, including as breeding stock.

In its comments, NMPF pointed out that six of the last seven Canadian cases of BSE were in cattle born after 1997. Four of the last six BSE cases were in animals born after March 1, 1999, which USDA pegs as the date of the Canadian cattle industry's full compliance with the feed ban.

"We feel that there are a few more questions that need to be answered before we allow replacement animals in the U.S.," said Jerry Kozak, NMPF President & CEO. "The dairy and beef industry should protect itself from another case of BSE entering this country through our borders."

The first case of BSE in the U.S. was a dairy animal, born in Canada, and exported to a Washington state dairy farm. It was discovered to have BSE in December 2003.

In its comments, NMPF expressed concern that Canada's implementation of the 1997 feed ban was not as effective as the government had originally thought. USDA estimates the prevalence of BSE in Canada at 6.8 animals per every 10 million adult cattle, which is more than seven times the BSE prevalence in the U.S.

"Detection of a single positive BSE animal within a U.S. commercial or breeding herd subjects that entire herd (all herdmates and offspring of the positively confirmed animal) to potential quarantine, testing and further tracing to the herd or herds of origin," NMPF wrote. "This rigorous follow-up regulatory action results in a great deal of adverse publicity for the entire cattle industry, and greatly jeopardizes export sales and markets for beef, and potentially dairy products if the associated animal is a dairy cow."

Kozak said that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has not yet done an economic impact analysis on the potential financial losses to dairy farmers from the resumption of Canadian dairy heifer imports. Such an action is "crucial to examining the overall changes to our market that will result from moving forward with a completely open border," Kozak said.

The comment period on USDA's proposal closed last week. USDA will now have to review all the comments received and come to a decision on the proposed rule.

NMPF Asks For More Time to Submit Comments on FDA Cloning Assessment

NMPF, along with other food industry associations, has asked the Food and Drug Administration for an extension on the comment period on the FDA's draft risk assessment on animal cloning. The comment period is set to close on April 2nd.

The other associations signing on to the letter were the American Bakers Association, American Frozen Food Institute, Food Marketing Institute, Grocery Manufacturers of America, International Dairy Foods Association, National Restaurant Association and the Snack Food Association. .

In addition to working on comments on the FDA's draft risk assessment and guidance for industry, NMPF is currently working with cloning technology providers on an electronic registry to track cloned livestock. The registry would be designed to help food processors and marketers verify affidavit claims that farmers and ranchers may be asked to sign concerning the use of cloned animals and their products in the food supply.

EU Agency Asked To Rule on Cloned Meat and Milk

Europe's top food safety agency has been asked to determine whether meat and milk from cloned animals are safe to eat, according to the European Commission officials.

In a letter sent to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the European Union's executive arm asked it to "assess the possible implications of cloning for food safety, animal health, animal welfare and environment in the EU."

If the technology gets a green light from the EFSA -- the ruling is due in six months -- cloned food products could be in supermarkets across the 27-country block by next year.

Commission officials were prompted by a draft ruling from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last December that meat and milk products from cloned cattle, pigs and goats were safe for consumption [see story above].

Hundreds of livestock have been cloned mainly in the United States, but the Commission's letter said cloning "appears likely to develop both in the EU and internationally."

CERCLA/EPCRA Legislation Reintroduced in Congress

NMPF is again backing efforts to legislatively clarify that animal manure is not meant to be regulated by Superfund laws.

New legislation was introduced this month in Congress to stipulate that manure is not a toxic waste product subject to the CERCLA/Superfund rule. The bill number for the House CERCLA Bill is HR 1398, and the companion bill in the Senate is S. 807. Both chambers considered identical bills last year, but didn't pass them.

On a related note, please see the article below regarding EPA's soon-to-be announced proposed CERCLA rule exempting CAFOs.

EPA Plans Exemption for CAFO Emissions from Superfund Reporting

According to Administrator Stephen Johnson, the Environmental Protection Agency is developing a proposed regulation exempting concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) from mandates to report their air emissions under Superfund laws..

The proposal will likely satisfy many agriculture industry officials, who have petitioned EPA for a narrow exemption from Superfund reporting rules, though the approach does not go as far as some industry officials have urged.

"EPA will soon ... be proposing a rule that will exempt air releases from animal waste from CERCLA emergency notification requirements," Johnson told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment & Related Agencies on Feb. 28. He said EPA would issue the proposal this year. Johnson made the commitment in response to a question from Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO), who raised concerns about the impact of environmental requirements on farmers in her district.

Johnson's remarks suggest the upcoming rule will apply to additional farm industry sectors as well, and that it may extend to hydrogen sulfide or other pollutants.

National Dairy Leaders Conference Deadlines Approaching

This is the last call to make reservations for the National Dairy Leaders Conference held April 15 - 17, 2007. The meeting will take place at the Skamania Lodge in Stevenson, WA, located about 45 minutes East of Portland, OR. The program is filled with farm tours, industry panels, speakers and the opportunity to talk with other dairy industry leaders from around the country.

Reservations can be made online at www.dairyevents.com or call NMPF to get a paper copy of the meeting program. Please contact Louise Kamali with any questions.

Associate Member Focus: National Dairy Herd Improvement Association

National Dairy Herd Improvement Association (NDHIA) is headquartered in Verona, WI. Their mission is to serve the best interest of National DHIA members and the dairy industry in maintaining a national dairy records program. NDHIA promotes the accuracy, credibility and uniformity of DHI records. NDHIA also administers the Quality Certificate Program. NDHIA works with USDA, NAAB, and PDCA in providing the dairy industry with needed, meaningful, and affordable programs with minimal duplication.

For more informaiton contact Jay Mattison at 608-848-6455 or visit their website.