USDA’s Farm Service Agency reported that the monthly Margin Protection Program (MPP) feed cost for August was $7.73/cwt.  The feed cost in the MPP is based on corn and alfalfa hay prices reported by USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) and soybean meal prices reported by the department’s Agricultural Marketing Service. All three feed cost components in the formula were down significantly from their July levels, which cut the August feed cost price from July’s number by $0.49/cwt. NASS also reported that the U.S. average all-milk price was $18.00/cwt. in August, $0.70/cwt. higher than the July all-milk price. The monthly MPP margin for August therefore rose by $1.19/cwt. to $10.27/cwt. from July’s margin of $9.08/cwt. The bimonthly margin average for the July-August period was $9.67/cwt.

The CME futures currently indicate that the monthly MPP feed cost will rise slowly from its current level through the end of next year, but remain below $9.00/cwt. throughout that time period. The CME dairy futures currently suggest that the all-milk price will decline slowly from its current level but remain mostly above $17/cwt. through the end of next year. Combined, the futures currently indicate little probability that the MPP margin will drop below $8.00. As shown in the accompanying chart, the USDA MPP Decision Tool projects that the MPP margin will remain well above $8/cwt. through 2018, based on the Sept. 29 CME futures settlements.

USDA’s MPP margin forecasts are updated daily online. NMPF’s Future for Dairy website offers a variety of educational resources to help farmers make better use of the program.

With assistance from Cooperatives Working Together, member co-ops secured 48 contracts to sell 6.84 million pounds of American-type cheeses and 1.32 million pounds of butter in September. The product will go to customers in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Oceania, and will be shipped from September through December of 2017.

These transactions raise the total CWT-assisted net product sales year to date to 55.15 million pounds of cheese and 4.33 million pounds of butter. The products are going to customers in 21 countries in five regions, and will move the equivalent of 606.56 million pounds of milk on a milkfat basis overseas through December 2017.

Helping CWT member cooperatives gain and maintain world market share through the Export Assistance program in the long-term expands the demand for U.S. dairy products and the U.S. farm milk that produces them. This, in turn, positively affects all U.S. dairy farmers by strengthening and maintaining the value of dairy products that directly impact their milk price.

The amounts of dairy products and related milk volumes reflect current contracts for delivery, not completed export volumes. CWT will pay export assistance to the bidders only when export and delivery of the product is verified by the submission of the required documentation.

All cooperatives and dairy farmers are encouraged to add their support to this important program. Membership forms are available on the CWT website.

NMPF’s “Peel Back the Label” campaign, launched earlier this year to reveal how some food companies employ misleading product labeling tactics, has unveiled five more examples of this fear-based marketing trend designed to increase their sales and confuse consumers.

The five additions range from including “non-GMO” labels on their products – even though no genetically modified version exists – to using “no added hormone” labels on poultry products when federal law already prohibits the addition of hormones to poultry. These companies join five of Peel Back the Label’s “bad actors,” which were unveiled when the campaign launched last month: Hunts, Florida’s Natural, Dannon, Himalania Rock Salt and TruMoo. They can all be found on the Peel Back the Label website.

The new examples are:

• Del Monte Canned Sliced Carrots: Del Monte’s canned sliced carrots include large “Non-GMO” seals on their labels, but there is no such thing as a genetically modified carrot, nor are the other three ingredients listed on the can genetically modified.
• Cuties Mandarin Oranges: Cuties’ label proclaims the product’s GMO-free status, but every citrus product on the market is already free of any GMOs.
• Bibb Lettuce from Living Fresh: Living Fresh claims that “we supply the Southeast with the freshest non-GMO produce,” but there is no such thing as genetically modified lettuce of any type.
• Tyson and Perdue: Tyson and Perdue adorn their packaged chicken with labels like “No Added Hormones or Steroids” or “No Hormones or Steroids Added,” but according to the USDA, it is illegal to sell poultry in the U.S. that was raised with added hormones.

“Fear shouldn’t be a factor when consumers are grocery shopping,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern. “We are engaged in this effort because consumers deserve to know the truth behind the label. With Peel Back the Label, we will continue to help consumers by putting a spotlight on deceptive, fear-based marketing.”

Through the Peel Back the Label website, the campaign is giving consumers access to the tools they need to separate hype from fact as they work to make informed food decisions for their families. Since its launch, Peel Back the Label has grown its community of supporters in social media to more than 22,000.

For the second year, the Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Program and the National Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) Program hosted a half-day session on Sept. 14 at the AABP Annual Conference in Omaha, Neb.

Dr. Keith Belk and Dr. Jeff Savell provided results of the cull cow and bull component of the National Beef Quality Audit conducted in 2016. The results showed advancement in the quality of beef products that both dairy and beef producers provide to the market. Dr. Hans Coetzee and Dr. Nigel Cook shared their perspectives on today’s emerging issues. Ranging from housing styles to pain management, both presenters spoke about pressure points from customers and consumers that the dairy industry must address, with continuous improvement in cow care at the forefront.

The final portion of the session consisted of a crisis drill, which allowed attendees to role-play different food chain stakeholders confronting a drug residue violation. Recognizing decisions from a different point of view was not only entertaining but challenging to the participants.

The shared FARM-BQA booth was a popular stop for veterinarians and industry stakeholders to grab copies of the FARM Drug Residue Pocket Guide. The Pocket Guides are available from the FARM Store.

FARM teamed up with BQA again at this year’s World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis., to share the results of the 2016 National Beef Quality Audit (NBQA) commissioned by the Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program. According to the results, the cattle industry continues to make progress in reducing defects that negatively impact beef quality, but the industry should more effectively communicate beef’s benefits to consumers.

ARLINGTON, VA – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) recent enforcement action against a Massachusetts granola maker for listing “love” as an ingredient in its product is a clear indication that the agency has time and resources to enforce regulations against the use of the term “milk” on the labels of plant-derived dairy imitators, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) said today.

In a letter to FDA, NMPF pointed out that many of the same criticisms leveled by the agency against Nashoba Brook Bakery’s granola and bread products apply to the manufacturers of plant beverages that are in violation of FDA standards of identity defining milk as the product of a dairy animal.

“While we have no doubt that the folks at Nashoba do indeed put love into the manufacture of their product, we hate to see misleading food labels that don’t comply with legal standards that other companies follow,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF.

“We hope that the agency’s enforcement action against a small New England baker for misusing food labeling standards, innocuous though this violation might be, is a prelude to FDA taking action against the myriad companies that manufacture hundreds of dairy imitators that also misappropriate federally-defined terms such as ‘milk’ and ‘yogurt,’” NMPF said in its letter to FDA.

In a warning letter sent recently to Nashoba Brook Bakery, FDA cited the company for listing “love” as an ingredient in its granola: “’Love’ is not a common or usual name of an ingredient, and is considered to be intervening material because it is not part of the common or usual name of the ingredient,” the letter said.

The FDA letter also warned the Concord, Mass., bakery that its whole wheat bread “fails to conform” to the standard of identity for products made from whole wheat flour: “This product contains wheat flour and corn meal. Therefore, it does not meet the standard of identity for whole wheat bread.”

NMPF has been engaged in on-going efforts to highlight similar deficiencies with the misleading use of the term “milk” on products made from nuts, grains, and seeds, yet “no enforcement activity has taken place,” Mulhern said. He noted that NMPF has provided FDA this year with multiple examples of misbranded imitation dairy foods, mostly recently the artificial dairy beverage Blue Magic Cashew Milk.

“FDA’s labeling enforcement must be consistent. The agency needs to enforce the proper labeling of all products that are currently playing fast and loose with federal food standards,” NMPF wrote the agency.  “Any food product that uses a food name established by a standard of identity but does not conform to the essential characteristics established by that standard is by law misbranded (21 U.S.C. §343(g)).”

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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.

MADISON, WI – The U.S. beef industry, of which dairy cows comprise a significant portion, continues to improve the quality of its management practices, according to the 2016 National Beef Quality Audit (NBQA) commissioned by the Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program. BQA and the National Dairy FARM Program shared the results at a news conference today at the 51^st World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisc.

“As dairy cows continue to grow as an integral part of the U.S. beef supply, these results demonstrate that producers are dedicated not only to producing a safe, wholesome, high-quality milk product but also to showing that same dedication to the meat produced by the dairy sector,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation. “The FARM Program’s partnership with BQA has produced valuable resources that help nurture an environment of continuous improvement for beef and dairy cattle.”

Any dairy farm participating in FARM Animal Care Version 3.0 will receive BQA certification equivalency. The two programs work collaboratively through their partnership to provide a collection of resources for producers. One example is a dairy stockmanship training video released earlier this year.

For 25 years, the beef checkoff-funded National Beef Quality Audit has delivered a set of guidelines and measurements to help cattle producers determine quality conformance of the U.S. beef supply. Today, dairy cows represent 20 percent of the U.S. beef supply, a sharp increase from 5.5 percent in 2011.

The NBQA results through the years have helped improve cattle and beef production and now also capture insights on beef quality and information related to food safety, sustainability, animal well-being and consumer preferences.

According to the 2016 results, the cattle industry continues to make progress in reducing defects that negatively impact beef quality. For example, lameness in cull cattle has improved significantly: Today, 76 percent of cull cattle are identified as sound. Body condition scores of cull cattle have also improved: Only 9.3 percent of cattle were identified as “too thin,” compared to 22 percent in 2007. Additionally, the number of blemishes, condemnations and other attributes that detract from value remain minimal.

One improvement the audit revealed is that the industry can more effectively communicate beef ’s benefits to consumers. “The research proved the cattle industry has a great story to tell, but also suggests we aren’t getting that story to as many people as we should,” said Josh White, executive director of producer education for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. “Utilizing the Beef Quality Assurance and the FARM programs and the shared principles more uniformly throughout the beef and dairy industries can not only enhance industry commitment to better beef, but would help increase consumer confidence and encourage greater beef demand. This research suggests that carrying the BQA and FARM message throughout the industry will benefit every beef audience.”

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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.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a letter sent today to President Donald Trump, U.S. food industry groups representing farmers and food manufacturers across several sectors urged the United States to immediately impress upon Japan, Mexico and the Mercosur nations that the lists of geographical indications (GIs) they are considering for approval with the European Union (EU) – or will soon be considering – must not include common food and beverage terms such as “parmesan,” “vintage” and “bologna.”

In its trade discussions with Japan and Mexico, the EU is currently pushing approval for lists of geographical indications (GIs) that include many common food names in an effort to monopolize those terms and block market access for various foods, wines and other beverages, the groups note. Japan and Mexico are closing their comment periods on the lists within the next few days, after which they are expected to finalize their negotiations with the EU. The Mercosur nations are Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.

“On behalf of American farmers and food manufacturers across this country, we ask for your direct attention to an issue that could have a significant negative impact on U.S. market access with two major trade partners: Mexico and Japan,” the letter states. “If the U.S. government firmly expresses its concerns now to Mexico and Japan regarding the importance of safeguarding common names and terms for all to use, both nations might be more inclined to take the right and just steps in these discussions. For the same reason, we strongly encourage firm and clear communications on these points with the Mercosur bloc of countries, the U.S. trading partner region most likely to next initiate a similar process to the ones currently underway in Mexico and Japan in light of ongoing EU-Mercosur FTA negotiations.”

The letter is signed by the American Farm Bureau Federation, Brewers Association, Consortium for Common Food Names, Grocery Manufacturers Association, International Dairy Foods Association, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, National Milk Producers Federation, North American Meat Institute, United Fresh, U.S. Dairy Export Council, USA Rice and Wine Institute.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has recognized the severity of EU abuses of GI policies, noting in this year’s intellectual property report that “the EU GI agenda remains highly concerning, especially because of the significant extent to which it undermines the scope of trademarks and other IP [intellectual property] rights held by U.S. producers, and imposes barriers on market access for American-made goods and services that rely on the use of common names, such as parmesan or feta.”

Moreover, it is an agenda that continues to expand and is likely to threaten even more products, such as plant varieties, moving forward, as is evidenced by the EU’s market-share grab of deeming long-standing and widely used grape varieties such as “prosecco” to now be GIs reserved exclusively for Italian use.

“Many U.S. companies – and the farmers who provide them with raw goods – will be harmed if Japan and Mexico fully accept the EU lists as is without pushing back and objecting to the inclusion of common terms,” the industry letter states. “We hope the United States will make its voice heard with Mexico and Japan, and in turn with Mercosur countries, clearly stating that we expect them to respect current trade agreements, including our market access rights under those agreements, and that it is in their best interests to safeguard common terms for all producers.”

Jaime Castaneda, executive director of the Consortium for Common Food Names, which has been coordinating U.S. industry filings on the GI lists in Japan and Mexico, stated: “The EU’s predatory strategy of using its FTA talks to hamper market access for its competitors, including many small- and medium-sized U.S. companies, must not be tolerated. As Japan and Mexico prepare to make their final decisions on lengthy EU GI lists that would impair the use of common names, we call on the administration to send a firm message at the highest levels that we expect our trading partners to abide by their existing trade commitments to us and preserve market competition in these common product categories.”

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ARLINGTON, VA – A coalition of dozens of dairy farm organizations, led by the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), is supporting new congressional legislation that would help address one of the most challenging issues affecting America’s milk producers: obtaining a dependable, legal workforce.

A founding member of the Agriculture Workforce Coalition, NMPF was joined by 57 dairy cooperatives and state dairy farmer associations today on a letter backing Rep. Robert Goodlatte’s (R-VA) new Agriculture Guestworker (AG) Act. Goodlatte’s House Judiciary Committee is expected to formally mark up the legislation on Wednesday, Oct. 4.  The AG Act would establish an entirely new visa program, dubbed the H-2C visa, which would allow farm employers to bring in foreign workers on a year-round basis. It would replace the existing H-2A temporary visa program, which dairy farmers cannot use because their labor needs are year-round, not seasonal.

NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern said Goodlatte’s bill “is a significant step forward in providing positive, workable solutions for dairy farm employers. It recognizes that we need to move past the status quo and pursue a new approach to matching the supply and demand for workers in U.S. agriculture.”

Mulhern said Goodlatte’s AG Act “reflects many of the key principles that our organization and its members have offered to the Judiciary Committee as the measure was developed.” In addition to establishing the new type of visa for future workers, it would allow current undocumented farm workers to apply for H-2C visas so that they can participate legally in the agricultural workforce. The new H-2C program will be administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, not the Department of Labor.

George Rohrer, a dairy farmer in Dayton, Va., and a member of the NMPF Board of Directors, said that farmers “have waited for years for lawmakers to fix our broken immigration system. The AG Act is evidence that Congressman Goodlatte has listened to many of our concerns, and is willing to try a new approach to the problem. As a farmer, it’s difficult to plan for tomorrow when you don’t know whether you’ll be able to hire qualified people today.”

In addition to legislation addressing the needs of farm employers, the House Judiciary Committee will also consider a measure requiring the use of the E-Verify database program. NMPF has been clear that mandatory E-Verify participation should only be required if farmers first have protections in place for current workers and access to a future labor pool.

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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.

If history teaches us anything, it’s that there are few new ideas under the sun since the days of P.T. Barnum when it comes to the strategies employed to grab consumers.  Even in the dairy marketplace, despite all the great qualities of our products, we too often see troubling and misguided appeals to people’s fears and lack of knowledge.

Because this type of marketing is nothing new, when we see its use today we know full well how this plays out:  Individual brands scrapping for sales growth try to scare shoppers into buying their products, which leads consumers to question the integrity of the foods they are eating, creating a receding tide that diminishes the entire category.  These appeals to fear are cheap, corrosive, and not constructive.

This reality is why NMPF has launched a new consumer campaign, called Peel Back the Label, that encourages shoppers to think twice about some of the dubious claims made on product labels.  While overall we are looking at different food products deploying a variety of deceptive claims, our main concern is the many misleading assertions made today about agricultural biotechnology.

Research we conducted at the start of the campaign was sobering. Many people either don’t know or care about GMOs, but there are a significant number of purchasers expressing concerns – despite their admission that they have no idea what GMOs are, how they are used, or that the science is clear that GMOs are completely safe for human and animal consumption.

Our consumer testing also found a small but vocal minority of consumers who understand the science behind food biotechnology, and are troubled by the amount of deceptive, derogatory rhetoric being used to scare people away from some brands, to the favor of others.  And it is this audience we seek to grow: people who will not simply succumb to the siren song of huckster advertising, but who will join our effort to call out disingenuous labeling claims.

What are some examples we are highlighting?  They include products labeled “non-GMO,” even though there are no genetically modified versions of such foods – like oranges, tomatoes or salt.  They include foods touting improved sustainability through sourcing non-GMO animal feed, when the evidence is clear that the opposite is true. They also include brands that suggest GMOs are something to worry about, despite the massive amount of research conducted around the world over the past 20 years that has time and again reaffirmed the safety of biotech crops.

I’ve been asked why National Milk is doing this now, or cares enough about the issue to invest resources in fighting what is regrettably an all-too-common trend in the food industry.  My answer is that we must learn from history to avoid repeating it.  Marketing to people’s worst instincts is a race to the bottom of product categories, and can damage an entire industry.

The best example of this for dairy is what happened with the use of recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST), or what was quickly dubbed bovine growth hormone. When FDA completed its safety assessment and first approved rbST more than 20 years ago, the agency spelled out how absence claims on dairy labels could be worded, since some brands wanted to make it a point of differentiation in the market.  The clear message sent by claims such as “No artificial growth hormones” or “Our farmers pledge not to use BGH” is that there’s something suspicious, even hazardous, about using rbST to produce milk.  Only the required fine print, appended with an asterisk and usually buried on the label, tells the whole truth: that there is no significant compositional variance in the milk from cows treated with rbST.  It is a distinction without a difference.

But that didn’t stop marketers from touting this absence claim.  The vast majority of fluid milk products today are sold as “rBST-free,” yet it hasn’t helped milk sales.  The implied message that the use of rbST is reason for shoppers to be wary has poisoned the entire well.  It’s clearly one reason why some consumers have forsaken the dairy milk category in favor of plant-based imitators.  It’s easy to envision how absence claims about GM animal feed use will chase away even more consumers and achieve a similar result.

The purpose of Peel Back the Label is to help people understand why the cynical use of fear-mongering to sell food is both deceptive and counterproductive.  Sowing the seeds of distrust doesn’t build consumer confidence, nor does it help anchor a successful long-term brand development program.

It’s unfortunate we’ve reached the point where this campaign is needed. But too much is at stake for America’s dairy farmers when their use of safe technological advancements that increase the sustainability of their farms is threatened by weak marketing claims up the food chain. We want to encourage an alternate focus on dairy’s many appealing qualities that will expand the pie for everyone.

Japan’s agriculture officials must respect current market access between Japan and its trading partners, including the United States, when reviewing a list of geographical indications (GIs) proposed by the European Union (EU), or else risk disrupting one of the world’s largest consumer marketplaces, the U.S. dairy industry urged today.

 

In a letter to the Japanese Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, leaders from the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) and the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) said it is imperative that Japan “not overlook the enormous significance of the EU food name list for Japanese consumers and producers, and for your lasting relationships with key international trading partners.”

The European Union is in the final stages of negotiating a free trade agreement with Japan, establishing the rules of commerce for hundreds of food products produced in each region. In doing so, the EU is seeking to monopolize a long list of common names under the guise of geographical indications in trade deals with Japan and other nations, including China and Mexico. This campaign attempts to restrict generic product names such as parmesan, feta and asiago to products made only by EU producers, and runs counter to international trade commitments.

 

The Consortium for Common Food Names and U.S. dairy groups have argued that this strategy is intended to deprive U.S. manufacturers of markets that local industries have developed. The EU’s goal of co-opting these terms would limit sales from non-EU companies to benefit European marketers, thereby stifling healthy competition among food producers all over the world.

 

“This is a critical moment for Japan as your nation prepares to review hundreds of food and beverage terms; the decisions Japan makes will have lasting impact for years to come,” the letter said. “We urge you to make sure that the steps you take do not unnecessarily limit healthy trade and competition within your market.”

 

The letter cited Canada’s decision to acquiesce to EU pressure, which has negatively affected its producers, consumers and trade partners The U.S. dairy leaders insisted that Japan can avoid this fate by helping to finalize a list of GIs that does not “encroach on generic names and terms.” For example, “Parmigiano Reggiano” is an acceptable geographical term, but the common name “parmesan” is already used by non-EU producers and widely used in Japan.

 

“For the good of our trade relationship, it is imperative that Japan’s efficient and transparent GI review process ensures that generic names and terms remain accessible to all,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern. “We encourage Japanese government officials to continue on this course, and to respect their own laws and international agreements with the United States.”

 

“Wholesale acceptance of the EU’s proposed GI list would not only unfairly limit the ability of U.S. and other nations’ cheesemakers to do business in Japan, it would negatively impact Japanese consumers and cheese producers,” said USDEC President and CEO Tom Vilsack. “We urge Japan to consider the confusion, marketplace disruptions and inflated prices that would ensue by restricting common cheese names as the EU desires.”

 

IDFA President and CEO Michael Dykes, D.V.M., said, “American dairy companies shipped $117 million of cheese products last year to Japan, which is the third-largest market for U.S. cheeses. We believe that trade agreements should break down barriers, not erect new ones, and we urge Japanese government officials to reject the EU’s attempts to block common food names and fair market access for U.S. companies.”

 

The Consortium for Common Food Names (CCFN), of which all three dairy groups are a part, has been instrumental in opposing any attempt to monopolize common food names that have become part of the public domain. It has been coordinating U.S. industry submissions to the Japanese government to defend common food terms that appear on the EU’s GI list. CCFN seeks an appropriate model for protecting both legitimate geographical indications and generic food names.

 

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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.

 

The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), Washington, D.C., represents the nation’s dairy manufacturing and marketing industries and their suppliers with a membership of nearly 525 companies within a $125-billion a year industry. IDFA is composed of three constituent organizations: the Milk Industry Foundation (MIF), the National Cheese Institute (NCI) and the International Ice Cream Association (IICA). IDFA’s nearly 200 dairy processing members operate more than 600 manufacturing facilities and range from large multi-national organizations to single-plant companies. Together they represent more than 85 percent of the milk, cultured products, cheese, ice cream and frozen desserts produced and marketed in the United States. Visit IDFA at www.idfa.org.