Author: Alan Bjerga

Dairy Defined: Be Thankful for Dairy’s Global Success This Christmas

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

ARLINGTON, Va. – Despite the seasonal pressures to buy, buy, and buy, the holidays are best as a season for giving. Yes, that means solicitations – deserving charities fill mailboxes, and earnest pleas to remember the less fortunate have become staples of the holiday season.

But for many people in less-wealthy parts of the world, the property for which they can be most thankful is something people in rich nations take for granted: Dairy cows. For all the disparagement it receives in some, more affluent quarters, the fact is that dairy provides livelihoods and nutrition to  hundreds of millions of people, many of them poorer, worldwide. Dairy lifts people from poverty and protects them from hunger. Dairy gives women jobs and sends girls to school. Dairy supports ecosystems and connects farmers to markets.

Stepping outside first-world problems for a moment, here for the holidays are a few thoughts on dairy’s global reach, and why we should be thankful for dairy farmers worldwide. (Thank you to Global Dairy Platform, an industry partnership that demonstrates dairy’s contribution to global food systems, healthy diets and sustainable livelihoods, for sharing data and graphics.)

  • The world is home to about 133 million dairy farms, with about 600 million people living on those farms. Another 400 million additional people work full-time jobs throughout dairy’s value chain That means more than roughly 1 in 8 people on the planet – 1 billion – are economically supported by dairy.

 

  • Most developing-world dairy farms have herds of two or three cows. Farms with more than 100 cows represent less than 0.3 percent of all dairy farms worldwide.

 

  • Of those 133 million dairy farms, 37 million of them are run by women.
  • Milk and dairy products account for about 14 percent of all global agricultural trade.

 

  • Finally, dairy is continually becoming more climate-efficient; greenhouse gas emissions have dropped by 11 percent per unit in the past decade. In North America the declines have been even steeper, falling not just per unit, but in total gross emissions as well.

 

Dairy is a big deal globally, just as it is in the United States. But dairy looks different in developing countries. It looks more basic, like something that’s essential to simple survival. Like something that should be nurtured and supported as a basic human right.

So when rich-world advocates call for sweeping changes to global diets or eliminating entire agricultural sectors — even though such goals could be met in ways that would allow agriculture to thrive, reduce poverty and contribute to climate and nutrition solutions — keep that in mind. This isn’t only about the 40,000 U.S. dairy farms that are the most carbon-efficient in the world. It’s about 133 million farms and a billion people, many who have much more to worry about than whether their beverage choices signal virtue to their privileged friends.

Let’s be thankful that dairy benefits everyone, regardless of their circumstances or wealth. Let’s work to encourage and sustain its success and celebrate its many contributions to our health and prosperity this Christmas season. Happy holidays, and a happy new year for dairy.

 (Note: NMPF’s Dairy Defined explores today’s dairy farms and industry using high-quality data and podcast interviews to explain current dairy issues and dispel myths.)

U.S. Dairy Applauds Japan’s Passage of Trade Deal, Urges Phase Two

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

ARLINGTON, VA — The U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) and National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) applaud Japan’s recent passage of Phase One of the U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement and the benefits it will bring the U.S. dairy industry once implemented.

The U.S. dairy industry is now urging U.S. trade negotiators to swiftly complete a Phase Two agreement in order to maximize opportunities for U.S. agriculture — in particular, dairy farmers and processors. It is critical that negotiators consult with Congress during Phase Two negotiations to ensure that the unique needs of various constituencies, including farmers and food manufacturers, are taken into account.

“Trade negotiators made important strides in the Phase One agreement that will serve as a strong foundation for a broader Phase Two agreement, opening the door for U.S. Dairy to fully realize our potential in Japan,” said Tom Vilsack, president and CEO of USDEC. “We know that American-made products can fill the growing Japanese demand for high-quality dairy, but a comprehensive Phase Two agreement is necessary to deliver the complete range of market access opening and assurances necessary to ensure that U.S. dairy products can best compete.”

A 2019 USDEC study found that if the U.S. has at least the same market access as its competitors, the U.S. could roughly double its share of the Japanese market over the next 10 years, underscoring the necessity of a Phase Two agreement. Given the importance of the U.S. market to Japanese exports, NMPF and USDEC have emphasized that the terms of trade offered by Japan to U.S. exports should not just meet but exceed those granted to its less valuable customers.

“We agree with the Administration that market access in Japan under TPP wasn’t sufficient. U.S. negotiators must achieve a better outcome for U.S. dairy farmers in a final agreement to remedy this. Addressing the missing pieces of market access from Phase One and establishing safeguards for the use of common cheese names should be a priority,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. “Trade negotiators must finish the job and deliver a full comprehensive agreement that prioritizes the needs of American dairy farmers.”

It is critical that negotiators and policymakers now turn their attention towards finalizing a comprehensive Phase Two agreement that prioritizes dairy access. This includes protecting common cheese names and addressing remaining gaps and inequalities in market access granted to our competitors by the Japan-EU and CPTPP agreements that leave U.S. dairy at a disadvantage.

Cooperatives Working Together Settlement Lifts Legal Cloud

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

ARLINGTON, VA. – The National Milk Producers Federation today announced it has reached a settlement agreement to end a class-action lawsuit concerning a herd retirement program that ended in 2010 and was administered through NMPF’s Cooperatives Working Together initiative. The settlement will safeguard ongoing efforts to aid U.S. dairy producers, lift a years-long legal cloud and allow NMPF member cooperatives and the current CWT program to move forward with greater legal and fiscal certainty.

The plaintiffs (generally larger retailers and companies who directly purchased butter and cheese from CWT member cooperatives) in First Impressions Salon, Inc. v. National Milk Producers Federation et al, (pending in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois), and defendant NMPF have agreed to a settlement of $220 million in exchange for a release from all claims. Based on antitrust rules that mandate a tripling of any damages, that amount is less than 6 percent of the damages sought by plaintiffs. The settlement amount will be paid through existing CWT mechanisms, ensuring no disruption to other business operations.

Neither NMPF nor any of its member cooperatives admit any wrongdoing as a result of this settlement. NMPF is the sole defendant to be a party to the settlement, but the settlement extinguishes claims against all the defendants.

“There is no way to sugarcoat a settlement of this size, especially given that the Herd Retirement Program was a well-publicized effort designed to serve dairy producers in difficult times and was praised by two Secretaries of Agriculture as well as leading members of Congress,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF, the nation’s largest organization representing dairy farmers. “Given the potential damages and the uncertainties surrounding any jury trial, resolving this case eliminates the possibility of a truly crippling outcome. Lifting this cloud will aid us in our work advancing the well-being of U.S. dairy producers, which includes the current robust CWT export assistance program.”

The plaintiffs’ litigation sought damages relating to the so-called Herd Retirement Program operated under Cooperatives Working Together. The program offered dairy farmers financial incentives to market their milking herds for beef. It operated between 2003 to 2010 and was openly lauded by USDA secretaries and congressional agriculture committee chairmen from both parties at the time as an important, appropriate way to help struggling dairy farmers.

NMPF’s decision to enter into this settlement recognized the uncertainties inherent in any jury trial, the very large damages sought by the plaintiffs and the fact that the successful Export Assistance Program is entirely unaffected by the settlement.  In 2018, CWT assistance aided 57 percent of American-type cheese exports, 44 percent of butter exports, and 39 percent of whole-milk powder shipments, helping U.S. dairy producers expand trade relationships in an extremely challenging world trade environment.

FDA Nomination Heads to Senate Floor With NMPF Hopeful for Progress on Fake Milk

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

ARLINGTON, Va. – The National Milk Producers Federation today expressed hope that the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee vote to send Dr. Stephen Hahn’s nomination to be commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to the full Senate for final confirmation represents another step toward greater transparency in the use of dairy terms in the marketplace.

“It is long past time for the FDA to begin enforcing its own standards, which make clear that dairy terms are reserved for real dairy products, not plant-based imitators that mislead shoppers by misrepresenting nutritionally inferior products,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. “We are hopeful that today’s vote to forward Dr. Hahn’s nomination to the full Senate is the beginning of the end of this long process, and we are eager to work with Dr. Hahn upon his confirmation to ensure that dairy product standards are enforced once and for all.”

Hahn voiced his support in his confirmation hearing last month for “clear, transparent, and understandable labeling for the American people” in an exchange with Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin.

The National Milk Producers Federation, which has been speaking out on plant-based imitators for four decades, has been encouraged by recent, long overdue FDA attention to the issue. For more background on NMPF’s position and statements of support from public-health organizations, click here.  NMPF also in February released a “road map,” found here, for how the agency can adapt existing standards to reflect the current marketplace and protect labeling integrity.

Dairy Defined Podcast: Mooney Speaks at Annual Meeting

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

 

(Note: NMPF’s Dairy Defined podcast explores today’s dairy farms and industry using high-quality data and podcast-style interviews to explain current dairy issues and dispel myths.)

ARLINGTON, Va. – U.S. dairy farmers have been through challenging times, but they’re ready to face the challenges of trade, the environment, climate and changing consumer tastes, said Randy Mooney, a Missouri dairy farmer and chairman of the National Milk Producers Federation. Mooney spoke this morning at the organization’s annual meeting, this in New Orleans.

“Dairy farmers play an important role in society. We help preserve communities,” he said. “Like all of you, I’m proud to be a dairy farmer, producing the most nutritious product in the world.”

To listen to the full podcast, click here. You can also find the Dairy Defined podcast on Spotify and SoundCloud. Broadcast outlets may use the MP3 file. Please attribute information to NMPF.

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 The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. NMPF’s member cooperatives produce more than two-thirds of U.S. milk, making NMPF dairy’s voice on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more, visit www.nmpf.org.