ARLINGTON, VA – Bolthouse Farms’ pea powder-based beverage is unfairly and illegally skirting federal regulations by marketing its product labeled as milk, according to the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), and FDA must take enforcement action against the maker of the product, Campbell Foods.

In a letter sent today to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), NMPF criticized both Campbell Foods and its California-based Bolthouse brand for the prominent use of the word “MILK” on the center of its package. According to NMPF, Bolthouse violates federal regulations by inaccurately labeling its product as milk, and ignoring FDA standards of identity that make clear milk and other dairy products must be sourced from animals, not plants.

Adding to the concern, the letter noted that in many grocery stores the Bolthouse product is sold in the dairy case immediately adjacent to real cow’s milk, further leading to consumer confusion about the origin and nutritional content of the product. The “lack of segregation, combined with the deliberate attempt to mislead consumers with the prominent use of the term ‘MILK’ on the label,” can easily confuse customers into believing the pea powder-based product is another brand of cow’s milk, NMPF wrote.

“At first glance, a consumer will see the word ‘milk’ and assume it’s an attractively packaged dairy product,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern. “Bolthouse shouldn’t deceive consumers in this way. FDA needs to immediately stop Campbell’s egregious violation of longstanding food labeling laws.”

The opaque powder-based fluid sold by Bolthouse Farms attempts to replicate the color, taste and mouthfeel of regular milk. But compared to milk’s three ingredients, Bolthouse’s pea product contains 14, all of which are added during factory processing.

At a time when consumers are seeking clean labels and more natural products, “Bolthouse is inaccurately labeling its product and deceiving consumers about its true content. Regular milk is the simple, natural product of a healthy dairy animal,” said NMPF’s Beth Briczinski. “No matter how much gum and vitamin or mineral supplements you add to a product, it will never replace milk’s natural goodness.”

In the fall of 2016, NMPF and the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) contacted Campbell Foods before the launch of its new Bolthouse Farms’ pea powder-based beverage, telling the company’s general counsel that the product did not adhere to federal standards of identity for dairy foods and therefore should not be labeled as “milk.” The dairy groups sent the letter “to provide Campbell’s an opportunity to address these issues before officially launching the product line.”

NMPF’s previous outreach to Campbell Foods “unfortunately has fallen on deaf ears, requiring us to bring this matter to the attention of FDA,” Mulhern said.

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The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF’s activities, visit our website at www.nmpf.org.

ARLINGTON, VA – The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) today expressed thanks to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue for his agency’s prompt implementation of changes in the dairy Margin Protection Program (MPP), and urged dairy producers to review the new coverage options available under the improved program, which will have a new enrollment window from April 9-June 1, 2018.

“We appreciate the steps taken by USDA to implement the new MPP provisions. It is important to provide information on the changes to dairy farmers so they can make informed decisions about enrollment in the program for this year, and we look forward to assisting the department in this effort,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today that it will re-open the sign-up period next week, and encouraged producers to take a second look at the program since it was revised under the Bipartisan Budget Act passed by Congress in February.

“NMPF worked with Congress during the past year to improve the dairy safety net to make it more effective for all farmers,” Mulhern said. “While the previous structure of the program offered an inadequate safety net, the changes made this year greatly enhance the value of the program to farmers, and we really want them to consider how to use this program in 2018. With these changes in place, we will continue to work with USDA and Congress to further strengthen the program in the 2018 Farm Bill.”

According to USDA, dairy producers must select new coverage for 2018, even if they enrolled during the previous sign-up period last fall. Coverage choices made this spring for calendar year 2018 will be retroactive to Jan. 1, 2018. All dairy operations desiring coverage must sign up during the eight-week enrollment period. USDA also announced that dairy producers can participate in either MPP or the Livestock Gross Margin program for dairy (LGM-Dairy), but not both.

The changes to the MPP were part of a larger dairy package that was included in the disaster spending bill passed by Congress two months ago. The provisions include:

• Adjusting the first tier of covered production to include every dairy farmer’s first five million pounds of annual milk production history (about 217 cows) instead of four million pounds
• Reducing the premium rates, effective immediately, for every producer’s first five million pounds of production history, to better enable dairy farmers to afford the higher levels of coverage;
• Modifying the margin calculation to a monthly (from bi-monthly) basis;
• Raising the catastrophic coverage level from $4.00 to $5.00 for the first tier of covered production for all dairy farmers; and
• Waiving the annual $100 administrative fees for underserved farmers.

The disaster package also lifted the $20 million annual cap on all livestock insurance, including the Livestock Gross Margin (LGM) program. This will allow USDA to develop a wider variety of additional risk management tools.

To the right is the updated premium chart following the MPP changes.

USDA’s web tool allows dairy farmers to quickly and easily combine unique operation data and other variables to calculate their coverage needs based on price projections. NMPF’s Future for Dairy website also offers informative resources and tools to help farmers determine the best insurance options for their operations.

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The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF’s activities, visit our website at www.nmpf.org.

One of the hallmarks of the natural world is that the most successful organisms are those that best adapt to a changing environment.  The same is true of organizations; those that adapt to change will prosper, while those that don’t face a dire future.

In the 15 years since the Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) program was founded as a dairy farmer self-help tool, it has undergone significant evolutionary shifts to ensure its maximum effectiveness and return on investment.  To fulfill its mission of helping America’s dairy farmers, CWT initially supported both dairy herd retirements and product exports. Since 2010, CWT’s exclusive focus has been enhancing exports of a mix of dairy products that provide the most lift for farm-level milk prices.  Specifically, CWT has targeted products containing a significant amount of milkfat, such as American-style cheeses and butter, since the value of fat is a dominant factor in farmers’ milk checks.

Over its lifespan, CWT has helped its member cooperatives move more than 900 million pounds of cheese, butter products and whole milk powder into export markets, representing the milk equivalent of 11.1 billion pounds.  The overall growth of U.S. dairy exports in recent years is due in no small part to the role played by CWT.  In fact, 80% of total American-type cheese exports, and 23% of butter sales, are made because of CWT’s export bonuses. It’s a successful model that ultimately benefits every cooperative and dairy farmer in America, regardless of their degree of involvement in the export activities of CWT.

But times are changing, and so must the CWT business model. The domestic market for dairy sales is growing at a slower rate than the world market overall. Total U.S. dairy exports have plateaued in the past three or four years, at a roughly 14% share of overall U.S. milk production.  The fast-rising middle class in the developing world presents a host of opportunities for dairy exports from the developed world – a fact that has not escaped the attention of our primary competitors. Companies in the European Union and New Zealand are repositioning their dairy sectors to capitalize on the long-term trend of growing demand for dairy in Asia and the Middle East.

Against this background, and with the support of the CWT board, we have recently formulated a new strategic assessment to evolve the program to address the new challenges of today’s world marketplace. We want to continue building on successful past practices but, critically, make course adjustments to address new challenges and take better advantage of all the opportunities in an increasingly dynamic global market.  CWT’s member cooperatives are reviewing a series of proposed improvements in its overall strategic mission and plan, with the goal of incorporating these strategic approaches as the program’s membership authorization is renewed for 2019 and beyond.  Among the strategies under consideration for CWT are the following recommendations:

Expand the range of exports to engage more products, shippers and customers. The present emphasis on American-style cheeses (cheddar, jack, gouda, swiss, colby) needs to include more varieties, as well as other cheese types that are commonly traded internationally, such as cream cheese and natural cheese blends. Also, there may be opportunities to develop more markets for processed cheese. Adding these, and possibly other products, will expand both the CWT supplier base and also create more potential end users for our products abroad.

Adjust the bidding process to facilitate longer-term contracts. The current limit of three months to fulfill an export contract will be increased to six months for cheese. This will help CWT’s members move beyond short-term commodity spot sales, either to larger sales based on longer-term pricing and/or to value-added products that are less vulnerable to shifts in commodity price cycles.

Encourage higher-value marketing strategies in retail and foodservice channels.  This adjustment will help CWT evaluate and potentially contribute matching funds toward efforts by members to create integrated export sales and marketing plans. While still under development, this possible role for CWT has the potential to boost member exports to meet longer-term performance benchmarks, moving beyond assistance for spot sales.

Develop improved market intelligence on prices and market needs. In order to spur more innovative uses of CWT’s membership resources, the program will need a greater emphasis on generating market intelligence and the ability to manage more complex program offerings.

Maximize collaboration with other farmer-funded efforts, such as USDEC and DMI. Although cooperation with these groups already exists, we can develop additional non-duplicative and membership appropriate synergies to ensure that such efforts continue to increase collaborative opportunities. Specifically, greater emphasis will be placed on market intelligence and identifying new market opportunities.

CWT has been a critically important and valuable export marketing tool for America’s farmers. But as we focus on helping to make the United States an even stronger and more effective player in the international dairy marketplace, the challenges ahead are different than the challenge of the past, when our task was introducing more American dairy products to foreign customers.

We will work this year to encourage those currently investing in CWT – and those who haven’t yet, or who once did – to consider the value in these new ideas, and the importance of being a collaborative part of CWT going forward.  There is much more we can accomplish as we collectively adapt to a changing landscape, harnessing a united U.S. dairy cooperative community to work together in expanding our export capabilities and sales. There’s a big market out there with lots of opportunity for increased sales. CWT is going to do its part to make sure America’s dairy farmers capture our share of those opportunities.

ARLINGTON, VA – The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) today applauded the Trump Administration’s swift and effective negotiation with South Korea regarding the terms and implementation of the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement (KORUS).

In a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, the two dairy groups expressed appreciation that trade officials were able to secure a result with South Korea that addressed certain dairy industry concerns while preserving the overall agreement.

South Korea was the fifth-largest U.S. dairy export market in 2017, accounting for $280 million in U.S. dairy sales. It is also the second-largest buyer of U.S. cheese, after Mexico.

“Preserving free trade agreements (FTAs) like this one is essential to strengthening our economy and expanding opportunities for America’s dairy producers and processors,” said Tom Vilsack, president and CEO of USDEC.

With KORUS, the U.S. dairy industry will remain a competitive dairy exporter to South Korea in a world in which most other major dairy exporters have access to the South Korean market through a trade agreement. This puts U.S. companies, shipping products, manufacturers and American-made milk on the same footing with dairy competitors from other countries.

“KORUS has had a demonstrable impact on the success of U.S. dairy exports,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern. “A renegotiated KORUS will strengthen our trade relationship with Korea, ensuring that the country continues to receive nutritious U.S. dairy foods. This will benefit both Korean citizens and the U.S. farmers producing these products.”

Leading up to the KORUS negotiations in early October 2017, USDEC and NMPF encouraged an approach that would address specific U.S. concerns, including that of customs procedures, while preserving the agreement. U.S. dairy exporters have repeatedly encountered challenges with South Korea’s overly narrow interpretation of which goods qualify as those originating from the United States. This meant that even goods produced in the United States with American-made ingredients and certified as such by the U.S. Department of Agriculture sometimes faced rejection. The letter thanked USTR for recognizing these types of issues and their impact on trade. “Resolving them can ensure that the agreement operates as it was truly intended to,” the groups said.

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The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, Va., develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of U.S. dairy producers and the cooperatives they collectively own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S, milk supply, making NMPF the voice of dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF’s activities, visit www.nmpf.org.

The U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) is a non-profit, independent membership organization that represents the global trade interests of U.S. dairy producers, proprietary processors and cooperatives, ingredient suppliers and export traders. Its mission is to enhance U.S. global competitiveness and assist the U.S. industry to increase its global dairy ingredient sales and exports of U.S. dairy products. USDEC accomplishes this through programs in market development that build global demand for U.S. dairy products, resolve market access barriers and advance industry trade policy goals. USDEC is supported by staff across the United States and overseas in Mexico, South America, Asia, Middle East and Europe.

ARLINGTON, VA – The massive congressional spending bill approved today by the Senate and just signed into law by the president contains several important achievements for America’s dairy farmers, including relief from potential regulation under the CERCLA law, according to the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF).

The omnibus bill contains a provision strongly supported by NMPF that would relieve dairy and other livestock producers from having to report manure-related air emissions under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). NMPF helped organize a coalition of farm groups to urge Congress to clarify that the measure – aimed at monitoring emissions from hazardous waste sites – was never intended to generate reports on low levels of emissions of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide from farms.

“Because of recent court decisions, the CERCLA law was poised to require farms to generate meaningless reports that regulatory agencies do not want and will not use,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. “We worked very hard to build bipartisan support for this legislation, which represents a common-sense fix to this looming legal dilemma.”

The congressional spending measure also includes a provision to recreate the Section 199 Domestic Production Activities Deduction (DPAD) tax provision that was repealed by last year’s tax reform bill. The measure largely refashions the DPAD to help preserve the competitive position of farmer-owned cooperatives in the marketplace. NMPF worked with other agricultural organizations to address the competitive implications created by last year’s tax law, emphasizing the need to maintain the prevailing tax treatment of dairy cooperatives and their farmer members in this area.

The omnibus bill also expresses Congress’ concern that many plant-based foods and beverages are not properly labeled, building on language from the DAIRY PRIDE Act (DPA), a bipartisan bill introduced last year in both chambers of Congress to compel FDA to act against misbranded imitations.

Given the existing definition of milk as a product of a dairy animal, NMPF said that Congress’ instructions to FDA in the omnibus bill should restrict the ability of beverages made from plant foods from using the term “milk” on their labels. This will also affect products misusing other dairy food names such as “cheese” and “yogurt” that are defined in the Code of Federal Regulations and cited in the congressional bill.

Mulhern expressed NMPF’s appreciation for the support of congressional members in both parties to ensure the spending bill included these and other priority issues of importance to dairy producers.

“It’s shaping up to be a difficult year economically for many dairy farmers, and the passage of these provisions is a bright spot for our members,” Mulhern said.  “We will continue to work with the House and Senate on other priorities, such as additional improvements to the dairy safety net, and changes to our immigration policies that address the labor needs of our farmers.”

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The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF’s activities, visit our website at www.nmpf.org.

ARLINGTON, VA – The congressional spending bill approved today in the House and awaiting final vote in the Senate directs the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take action against mislabeled imitation dairy foods, representing a major victory for farmers and consumers alike, according to the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF).

The massive omnibus spending bill to fund the government for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2018 includes report language instructing FDA to enforce labeling standards affecting dairy imitators. NMPF said the omnibus language builds on the DAIRY PRIDE Act (DPA), a bipartisan bill introduced last year in both chambers of Congress to compel FDA to act against misbranded imitations.

“It’s high time that we end the blatant disregard for federal labeling standards by marketers of nutritionally inferior imitation dairy products,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. “The language in the congressional budget bill will help ensure action on the matter by FDA after years and years of inaction. This measure is clear and unequivocal that honest labeling matters to Congress and consumers, and that FDA can no longer turn a blind eye toward fake foods that deliberately flout federal standards of identity.”

The omnibus provision expresses Congress’ concern that certain plant-based beverages are not properly labeled. Given the existing definition of milk as a product of a dairy animal, NMPF said that Congress’ instructions to FDA should restrict the ability of beverages made from plant foods from using the term “milk” on their labels. This will also affect products misusing other dairy food names such as “cheese” and “yogurt” that are defined in the Code of Federal Regulations and cited in the congressional bill.

The congressional directive to FDA “will stem the flagrant misuse of the word ‘milk’ on products that are, by FDA’s own definition, not milk nor are made from milk.” Mulhern said. “Real milk is well-known for its strong nutritional contributions, which is why the fake food marketers want so badly to continue using dairy terms on dozens of different plant powder formulations. But these products are pale replicas, not an acceptable substitute for real milk from a nutritional standpoint. This measure will help end the confusion that just co-opting a word somehow makes a food nutritionally equivalent,” he said.

NMPF has worked since early 2017 with members of both the House and Senate on a bipartisan basis to build support on Capitol Hill for the DPA provisions. The language in the omnibus bill gives FDA 180 days from the date of enactment of the measure to issue guidance for how the dairy standards will be implemented and enforced.

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The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF’s activities, visit our website at www.nmpf.org.

ARLINGTON, VA – The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) supports the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) proposal to revoke an authorized health claim that links soy protein with a reduced risk of coronary heart disease. The organization also repeated its insistence that FDA take action against plant-based food companies that inappropriately use dairy terminology to market inferior imitation dairy products, such as soy “milk.”

Last fall, FDA announced its proposal to revoke the health claim because numerous studies since its original authorization in 1999 have presented “inconsistent findings” regarding the relationship between soy protein and a reduced risk of coronary heart disease. In comments submitted Monday, NMPF commended the agency for undergoing the rigorous review of recent science to take a closer look at the health benefits of soy protein.

Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF, lauded FDA for acknowledging the continuing evolution of nutrition science and information. “Research on nutrition and health continually changes, and FDA’s regime for health claims must recognize this basic fact,” he said. “FDA is appropriately acknowledging that health claims are not carved in stone, but can and should be periodically reviewed in light of evolving nutrition evidence.”

“New research revealing the lack of heart benefits from soy protein or just as important, a positive effect from dairy fat, means that Americans can make more informed, healthier decisions regarding their diets,” he said.

FDA’s proposed rule comes almost 10 years after the agency initially announced its intent to re-evaluate the science behind the soy protein health claim. During this extended time, NMPF said, soy food manufacturers have exploited the claim to advertise their products as healthy, when science has not supported that claim.

Certain soy food companies have used the claim when labeling their imitation dairy products, insisting that because of soy’s purported healthful properties, soy “milk” is a healthy alternative to conventional cow’s milk. Not only is this health claim without significant scientific support, based on FDA’s proposed rule, it also blatantly skirts federal regulations on the labeling of dairy foods like “milk,” “cheese” and “yogurt,” said NMPF.

“It is imperative that consumers have accurate label information in addition to health claims – specifically the name of the food, which also conveys nutrition information,” said NMPF, reiterating its plea for FDA to take enforcement action against such products.

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The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance the well-being of dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. The members of NMPF’s cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF’s activities, visit our website at www.nmpf.org.

 

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) applauded the withdrawal this week of a series of bills in the Tennessee state legislature that could have increased consumers’ risk of foodborne illness by encouraging the use of raw milk.

The Tennessee state senate and its state general assembly each considered adopting a pair of bills meant to increase the availability of raw milk products:  SB 1913 and HB 1963 would have removed existing regulations prohibiting the direct sale of raw milk butter; while SB 2104 and HB 2229 would have exempted raw milk and dairy products sold from a home kitchen from licensure, inspection and regulation. The Tennessee general assembly did not approve either bill, effectively killing the effort this year to pass both measures.

The dairy groups earlier this year had advised state lawmakers in Nashville to oppose the proposals, given that passage of the bills likely would have increased the production and consumption of unpasteurized products that have a significantly higher likelihood of spreading disease-causing bacteria.

“Consumption of raw milk is a demonstrated public health risk. The link between raw milk and foodborne illness has been well‐documented in the scientific literature, with evidence spanning nearly 100 years,” said Jim Mulhern, President and CEO of NMPF.  “Raw milk is a key vehicle in the transmission of human pathogens, including E. coli O157:H7, Campylobacter, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella.”

“Our dairy industry benefits from a very high degree of consumer confidence – confidence built in large part due to the excellent food safety record of milk and dairy products,” said Michael Dykes, D.V.M., IDFA President and CEO. “Legalizing and regulating the sale of raw milk sends a signal to consumers that drinking unpasteurized milk is safe when, in fact, the opposite is true.”

In correspondence earlier this winter, the two organizations provided Tennessee lawmakers with overwhelming evidence collected by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) linking the increased availability of raw milk products with a rise in serious human illnesses.

In data collected between 2009 and 2014, CDC researchers concluded that unpasteurized milk is 840 times more likely to cause food‐borne illness than pasteurized milk, and such illnesses have a hospitalization rate 45 times higher than those involving pasteurized dairy products. The CDC has reported nearly 75% of raw milk‐associated outbreaks have occurred in states where sale of raw milk was legal. The organization recently updated its consumer website to explain the dangers of consuming raw milk products.

The two national dairy associations noted that there is no benefit or positive health outcome substantiate in any medical literature linked to the consumption of raw milk.

“While choice is an important value, it should not pre‐empt consumers’ well‐being. To allow the state‐wide sale of raw milk or any dairy product when sold from a home kitchen is an unnecessary risk to consumer safety and public health,” Mulhern and Dykes told lawmakers.

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) applauded the withdrawal this week of a series of bills in the Tennessee state legislature that could have increased consumers’ risk of foodborne illness by encouraging the use of raw milk.

The Tennessee state senate and its state general assembly each considered adopting a pair of bills meant to increase the availability of raw milk products:  SB 1913 and HB 1963 would have removed existing regulations prohibiting the direct sale of raw milk butter; while SB 2104 and HB 2229 would have exempted raw milk and dairy products sold from a home kitchen from licensure, inspection and regulation. The Tennessee general assembly did not approve either bill, effectively killing the effort this year to pass both measures.

The dairy groups earlier this year had advised state lawmakers in Nashville to oppose the proposals, given that passage of the bills likely would have increased the production and consumption of unpasteurized products that have a significantly higher likelihood of spreading disease-causing bacteria.

“Consumption of raw milk is a demonstrated public health risk. The link between raw milk and foodborne illness has been well‐documented in the scientific literature, with evidence spanning nearly 100 years,” said Jim Mulhern, President and CEO of NMPF.  “Raw milk is a key vehicle in the transmission of human pathogens, including E. coli O157:H7, Campylobacter, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella.”

“Our dairy industry benefits from a very high degree of consumer confidence – confidence built in large part due to the excellent food safety record of milk and dairy products,” said Michael Dykes, D.V.M., IDFA President and CEO. “Legalizing and regulating the sale of raw milk sends a signal to consumers that drinking unpasteurized milk is safe when, in fact, the opposite is true.”

In correspondence earlier this winter, the two organizations provided Tennessee lawmakers with overwhelming evidence collected by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) linking the increased availability of raw milk products with a rise in serious human illnesses.

In data collected between 2009 and 2014, CDC researchers concluded that unpasteurized milk is 840 times more likely to cause food‐borne illness than pasteurized milk, and such illnesses have a hospitalization rate 45 times higher than those involving pasteurized dairy products. The CDC has reported nearly 75% of raw milk‐associated outbreaks have occurred in states where sale of raw milk was legal. The organization recently updated its consumer website to explain the dangers of consuming raw milk products.

The two national dairy associations noted that there is no benefit or positive health outcome substantiated in any medical literature linked to the consumption of raw milk.

“While choice is an important value, it should not pre‐empt consumers’ well‐being. To allow the state‐wide sale of raw milk or any dairy product when sold from a home kitchen is an unnecessary risk to consumer safety and public health,” Mulhern and Dykes told lawmakers.

While the policy-making process in Washington can often proceed at a crawl, sometimes, through dogged persistence and persuasion, progress is possible.  A powerful example is the series of improvements Congress just enacted to improve the federal dairy safety net.

One year ago the NMPF Board of Directors endorsed a package of recommended changes to the dairy Margin Protection Program (MPP) – the farm bill safety net that up to this point has failed to provide a meaningful, effective source of risk coverage to farmers during difficult times. We also sought the expansion of risk management program offerings through USDA, as another means for farmers to manage their milk and feed cost volatility.

Faith in the MPP has understandably withered since 2015, as the program has not generated meaningful levels of support, despite periods of compressed margins over the past three years. In its list of proposals, NMPF identified four key areas in which modifications were necessary to shore up the MPP and make it an effective program. We also stressed the need to offer a broader range of risk management tools to producers of all sizes.

In the last year, NMPF worked diligently to build the case on Capitol Hill for why immediate changes were needed to the MPP.  With grassroots support from our member cooperatives, we told lawmakers on the agriculture and appropriations committees that fixing the dairy safety net would require that more resources be devoted to both the MPP and other risk management tools, in order to provide effective economic protection for dairy farmers.

In Washington-speak, “more resources” is shorthand for more money.  Needless to say, finding more money for any government program is a perennial challenge, but we made a compelling argument that getting the policy right should be of paramount concern for the legislators – and that the correct policy would have a slightly higher price tag than current spending for MPP and other federal risk management offerings. That’s because MPP has actually contributed more to the federal treasury so far than it has cost, and USDA’s dairy risk management program – the Livestock Gross Margin program – had a total cost cap of only $20 million.

After 10 months of negotiation, Congress adopted the desired changes in early February, using a must-pass disaster funding bill to deliver many of the enhancements we sought, both to the MPP and to LGM-Dairy.  The final package will help shore up dairy programs and provide additional help for cotton farmers also suffering from an inadequate safety net program.

The changes to the MPP and the expansion of other risk management options are significant and valuable. They include:

• Raising the catastrophic coverage level from $4/cwt. to $5/cwt. for the first tier (5 million pounds) of milk production history for ALL dairy farmers.
• Adjusting the first tier of covered production to include each farm’s first 5 million pounds of annual milk production history (the output of about 215 cows), up from 4 million pounds.
• Reducing the premium rates for every producer’s first 5 million pounds to better enable dairy farmers to afford the higher levels of coverage that will provide more meaningful protection against low margins.
• Making payments monthly, rather than bimonthly, to be more responsive to volatile market conditions.
• Waiving the annual $100 administrative fees for “underserved” farmers:  those who meet certain criteria defined by USDA, including limited resource, beginning stage, veteran or socially disadvantaged farmers.
• Removing the $20 million annual cap on all livestock insurance, including the LGM-Dairy program. This will allow USDA to develop and/or approve additional risk management tools for dairy producers that can complement MPP-Dairy.

This last element is an important alteration that shouldn’t be overlooked in the focus on improvements to the MPP. Expanded access to LGM – and other potential risk management insurance products from USDA – may be a more useful risk management option for some farmers not wanting to use MPP.

The bill directs the USDA to re-open sign-up in the MPP, but we don’t yet know when farmers will have the opportunity to enroll or change their coverage. NMPF has been clear that the process should happen soon, and even more importantly, that enrollment in 2018 must provide farmers coverage for the entire year, because margins in the next several months will be poor.

Many members of Congress of both parties and on both sides of Capitol Hill were helpful and supportive of efforts to improve federal dairy policy.  We thank Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) for their leadership in crafting the MPP reforms.  These vital provisions also received strong support from Senators Thad Cochran (R-MS) and Pat Roberts (R-KS).  In the House of Representatives, Reps. Mike Conaway (R-TX) and Collin Peterson (D-MN) authored changes that will give dairy farmers the ability to access a variety of additional risk management tools that can complement MPP.  In addition to these key congressional leaders, we appreciate the strong support that scores of members lent to this effort over the last year and beyond.

These changes enact three out of the four goals developed by NMPF last year. The fourth is adjusting the MPP coverage levels to account for problems with how the program’s margin is calculated, to better reflect the monthly gap between milk prices and feed costs. We hope to have an opportunity to address this issue in the coming months as Congress writes the 2018 Farm Bill. We’ve already served notice that additional changes are needed to make the MPP a fully functioning safety net.  More work remains, but thanks to a strong grassroots effort, we’ve made great progress so far. We’ll provide more updates about these changes as they become available at www.futurefordairy.com.