Author: Theresa Sweeney

Doud Takes Reins at NMPF

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

NMPF began its new year with a new President and Chief Executive Officer, as Gregg Doud succeeded outgoing leader Jim Mulhern on Jan. 1.

“As NMPF’s new president and CEO, I am duty-bound to defend this industry. And because of our farmer and co-op leadership and first-class staff, we defend it well,” Doud said in his first CEO’s Corner, published yesterday. “2024 is also exciting because of the great potential we in dairy have to take the initiative. We can attack as well as defend. 2024 is going to be a great year for this industry. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share in the leadership of this journey.”

Doud has served in numerous leadership roles in trade association and government work in his more than 30-year career in agricultural policy and economics, most recently at Aimpoint Research, a global intelligence firm specializing in agriculture and food. From 2018 to 2021 he served as Chief Agricultural Negotiator for the U.S. Office of the Trade Representative, appointed by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the Senate, where he led numerous successful efforts to create a fair, prosperous environment for U.S. agricultural exports, including the U.S.-China “Phase One” agreement and the USMCA negotiations.

Before that role, he served as president of the Commodity Markets Council, a trade association for commodities exchanges and industry counterparts; as senior professional staff on the Senate Agriculture Committee; and as chief economist for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, among other roles.

Mulhern leaves NMPF with the organization spearheading a once-a-generation update of federal milk marketing orders; with dairy farmers benefiting from a comprehensive federal safety net that features a suite of risk-management programs tailored to farms in all sizes and regions; agriculture-leading initiatives on sustainability and animal care; and undeniable progress in creating a more transparent marketplace for consumers amid the proliferation of plant-based dairy imposters, among other accomplishments.

FMMO Hearing, Now USDA’s Longest, Drags Into 2024

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

When USDA’s Federal Milk Marketing Order hearing reconvenes on Jan. 16, it will set a new record for the longest hearing in USDA history. NMPF’s proposals, however, have all been examined, with dairy cooperative leadership firmly stamped on testimony and cross-examination that will likely reach more than 15,000 pages by its expected conclusion on Groundhog Day, Feb. 2.

NMPF’s December focus was finishing region-by-region discussion on its final proposal, Proposal #19 to update Class I differentials. NMPF testimony concluded with analysis supporting the full range of NMPF proposals for comprehensive modernization offered by Dr. Scott Brown of the University of Missouri. Cooperative experts also explained both the need for updated differentials and the detailed analysis behind NMPF’s plan.

The final two weeks of presentations on the final three of 22 total proposals are scheduled for Jan. 16-19 and Jan. 29-Feb. 2, more than three months later than USDA’s originally projected completion date. The dragged-out hearing, largely because of an unexpectedly contentious atmosphere encouraged by exhaustive cross-examination by processor groups, may potentially cost farmers millions of dollars due to current inequities in the current, unmodernized system. Upon its conclusion, the next stage will be to create a legal brief, a written argument of NMPF’s case presented at the hearing to USDA using testimonies, exhibits, and cross-examinations.

For all the effort expended thus far, 2024 may be the most critical year of the entire FMMO modernization process that began with NMPF examination in 2021, as co-op leadership and farmer-owners lead the way in ensuring a final, adopted USDA proposal that heavily incorporates NMPF’s unanimously adopted, farmer-led, consensus and common-sense proposal for change.

House Overwhelmingly Backs Whole Milk in Schools

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The U.S. House of Representatives approved the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act on Dec. 13 with a commanding 330-99 margin, demonstrating compelling bipartisan support for expanding dairy in school meal nutrition programs.

The measure, led by Representatives GT Thompson, R-PA, and Kim Schrier, D-WA, expands the milk options schools can choose to include 2% and whole milk, in addition to the skim and 1% varieties currently allowed, increasing the number of tools schools can use to deliver vital nutrition to students by allowing more nutritious milk options schools can opt to serve.

“Expanding the milk schools can choose to serve to include 2% and whole is a common-sense solution that will help ensure kids have access to the same healthful milk options they drink at home,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern upon House approval.

The House vote came after extensive Hill work and grassroots advocacy, including an NMPF call to action to its mailing list of dairy advocates that can be joined here. The legislation gained near-unanimous support among House Republicans and a majority of Democrats, generating significant momentum for Senate consideration this year.

NMPF has been committed to reinstating in schools the milk options removed in 2012, including 1% flavored milk and all varieties of 2% and whole. After years of working with members of Congress, meeting with USDA, and filing regulatory comments, 1% flavored milk was returned to school lunch menus on more permanent footing in 2022. NMPF has simultaneously built bipartisan support for 2% and whole milk options. NMPF also has been urging the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee to incorporate the robust body of scientific evidence showing the health benefits of dairy in all compositions, which should help expand dairy options in nutrition programs limited by dietary guidelines recommendations.

More Protein, Better Policy: Welcome to 2024

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

Happy New Year, and what a year 2024 promises to be. Within dairy and throughout agriculture, the refrain that will be often repeated is that this will be the year of protein. In fact, it may be the first of many — if you look out over the next decade, the supply of animal protein in the world – that’s beef, pork, poultry, and dairy — comes nowhere near meeting the demand.

That means U.S. dairy’s emphasis on exports and our international competitiveness will certainly be an area of focus. Dairy farmers and their cooperatives are extremely well positioned to do this: we’re efficient, we can get high-quality products overseas competitively, and our processing capacity is expanding. Our innovation and technology in the dairy industry to expand international markets is second to none. NMPF can support these efforts by continuing our excellent partnership with the U.S. Dairy Export Council and by seeking sound policy that promotes the powerhouse potential of U.S. dairy.

Our Cooperatives Working Together Program will soon be in a position to bring significantly greater resources to bear in supporting market growth for U.S. dairy worldwide – just as our main competitors in New Zealand and Europe take a step back in large part due to regulatory constraints we in the United States have been able to avoid.

We also have room to grow our industry by increasing protein demand at home. A focus on the next generation is critical to achieving this. Last month, the House of Representatives took an important step toward boosting the next generation of milk drinkers by passing the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, which would get whole and 2% milk back on school lunch menus. The vote was 330-99, which gives us high hopes in the Senate next year. Meanwhile, we know that the science behind the health benefits of dairy in all its compositions is only becoming more compelling – and that puts us in a great position as the Dietary Guidelines for Americans Committee meets to craft new nutrition standards that guide federal programs.

More demand for dairy protein and better health, in America and worldwide. If that’s not enough to get an industry excited for the future, I don’t know what could be.

Another critical topic for this year is risk management. USDA’s Federal Milk Marketing Order hearing has been painfully slow, but it’s incredibly important for U.S. dairy producers. Our NMPF game plan and team effort has been outstanding thus far, and we will follow the hearing to its conclusion. We will be prepared to respond as needed to whatever USDA proposes and ensure that the path forward is what’s best for dairy.

A new Farm Bill is also on tap. We’re comfortable this time around with the fundamental structure of the dairy safety net, but there are always improvements to be made, and we’ll be seeking opportunities for positive change whenever they become available.

Of course, federal policy includes much more than just the Farm Bill. We’re excited to see the evolution of greenhouse gas regulation and carbon markets in ways that benefit dairy farmers. We are pushing for faster approvals for feed additives that reduce methane emissions and put us on a path toward consistently improving our environmental footprint. We’re excited to see billions of dollars of investment capital and new technology and innovation flow toward dairy, because it’s not just farmers who believe in this industry’s future – it’s some of the world’s brightest minds and savviest investors.

These are just some of the most immediate opportunities we can meet. Looking only slightly beyond 2024, we will again need to address tax policy and how we can stimulate investment and growth in all of agriculture and rural America. In addition to that are the ongoing, long-term fights where progress is slow, but real. Dairy is chipping away at the market share of plant-based imposter-dairy beverages and making headway with FDA in restricting the use of dairy terms. Our FARM program remains a world-leading customer assurance program that’s protecting this industry from the wildly inaccurate claims of our detractors and competitors.

As NMPF’s new president and CEO, I am duty-bound to defend this industry. And because of our farmer and co-op leadership and first-class staff, we defend it well. But 2024 is also exciting because of the great potential we in dairy have to take the initiative. We can attack as well as defend. 2024 is going to be a great year for this industry. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share in the leadership of this journey.

Gregg Doud

President & CEO, NMPF

 

 

NMPF Applauds House Increasing Kids’ Access to Critical Nutrition

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) emphatically commended the House of Representatives for taking a critical step toward improving child nutrition by approving the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act today with a commanding 330-99 bipartisan margin. The measure, led by Representatives GT Thompson, R-PA, and Kim Schrier, D-WA, expands the tools schools can use to deliver vital nutrition to students by increasing the variety of healthful milk options school can choose to serve.

“NMPF is delighted that the House approved the bipartisan Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act,” said Jim Mulhern, President & CEO of National Milk Producers Federation. “Milk’s unique nutritional profile gives it an unparalleled role in providing kids the nutrients they need. Expanding the milk schools can choose to serve to include 2% and whole is a common-sense solution that will help ensure kids have access to the same healthful milk options they drink at home. House passage is a critical step, and we urge the Senate to consider this bill immediately so it may be enacted into law.”

School milk, a mainstay of lunch menus for generations, plays an especially important role in improving nutrition security as an effective, inexpensive way of providing the nutrition kids need. NMPF has been tireless in its advocacy for reinstating whole milk, which was removed from school lunch menus in 2012. Since then, advancing science on the benefits of milk at all fat levels, as well as evidence of increased food waste from current limited choices, makes its return a top nutrition priority for schoolchildren, the families who serve nutritious fuller-fat varieties at home, and the school meal professionals who strive to effectively nourish those whom they serve.

The House-approved Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act will now be sent to the Senate, which already has its own version of the bill. The Senate measure is being led by Senators Roger Marshall, R-KS, and Peter Welch, D-VT, and has Republican, Democratic, and Independent cosponsors.

 

Whole Milk Brings the Nutrition Children Want, and Need

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

Much has changed about milk consumption since 2012, the year that whole and 2 percent milk varieties were no longer allowed in federal school meal programs. Since then, the body of research supporting the benefits of fuller-fat milk has grown more robust, with research showing that dairy foods at higher fat levels are linked to outcomes such as lower total body mass in kids and lower childhood obesity. Milk is, simply put, a nutrition powerhouse.

Concern over food waste has also grown, with food waste rising when kids are given meals they don’t want to eat. Meanwhile, the gulf between what kids drink at home versus what they’re served in schools – already gaping when the ban took effect — has only widened.

 

This is the percentage of U.S. fluid milk consumption, excluding flavored varieties, in 2012, and again in 2022. Even at the time the rules changed, keeping whole and 2 percent milk off school meal menus was out of step with what parents gave their own children, with roughly 68 percent of consumption coming from those varieties. That should have been an ominous sign for anyone who ever thought children would flock to milk that didn’t taste like what they had at home.

That disconnect is even worse today.

In 2022, whole and 2 percent milk accounted for roughly 80 percent of consumption – and still, students don’t have access to the same healthy choices they almost certainly have at home. This is a lost opportunity for high-quality, affordable nutrition that kids would gladly consume. And that’s why, when the House of Representatives takes up the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act this week, lawmakers should take heed of the choices voters make at the grocery store – decisions that align with the latest scientific research on the benefits of dairy at all fat levels as well as consumer preference.

Having whole and 2 percent milk in school meals will nourish children and reduce food waste. And most importantly, it encourages kids to consume the nutrients they need. Taking the most popular varieties of milk out of meals was a questionable decision in 2012 – it’s indefensible in 2023. NMPF has a call to action urging lawmakers to pass the bill – the bigger the margin, the more pressure on the Senate to make it law. Dairy farmers, as well as parents and educators everywhere, will be watching the House with great interest this week.

And when common sense wins, we know exactly what we’ll drink at the celebration.

DMC Margin Gains $1 in October

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) Program margin in October saw another significant monthly increase, as the futures markets had been anticipating. The all-milk price rose $0.60/cwt from September to $21.60/cwt., and the October DMC cost was down by $0.40/cwt to $12.16/cwt., mostly due to a lower corn price. The October margin was therefore $9.44/cwt, generating just a 6-cent margin payment for coverage at the $9.50/cwt Tier 1 level.

The dairy and grain futures markets are anticipating the substantial increases the DMC margins  have made over the past three months, from $3.52/cwt in July to October’s $9.44/cwt, have hit pause, and the margin will remain at or modestly below the $9.50/cwt level for the next several months.

FMMO Hearing Focuses on Price Surface, May End in February

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

NMPF witnesses advocated for a fairer Class I price surface dominated testimony in USDA’s Federal Milk Marketing Order hearing, which resumed Nov. 27 in Carmel, IN. That’s critical for its contributions to the hearing record the Agriculture Department is building to craft a proposal to submit to farmers next year.

Economist Peter Vitaliano continued to anchor NMPF’s testimony, joined by multiple co-op experts explaining the effects of a modernized formula taking account of differing cost structures for milk production in various regions of the country. With NMPF’s Proposal #19 taking the bulk of the hearing time over a scheduled two-week period, the team effort highlighted the unanimous co-op unity that’s allowed NMPF to lead the discussion, aided by organizations such as the American Farm Bureau Federation and the Milk Producers Council that are aligned with NMPF positions and show broader farmer and industry support for the proposal.

The hearing itself, however, is becoming significantly delayed, with an original timeline of wrapping up in mid-October now being pushed as late as early February due to venue availability and delays for holidays. That potentially may cost millions of dollars to farmers who would not benefit from the improved component pricing, modernized Class I price surfacing and the return to the “higher of” Class I mover. NMPF continues its thorough preparation for all scenarios.

EPA Calls for Nominations to Animal Agriculture and Water Quality Subcommittee

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

EPA has opened nominations for the Animal Agriculture and Water Quality Subcommittee, a subcommittee of the Farm, Ranch and Rural Communities Advisory Committee.

The subcommittee goal is to inform agency decisions on how to improve the implementation of the Clean Water Act National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation permitting program to effectively reduce nutrients and other types of water pollutants from animal feeding operations. The subcommittee will help determine whether any revisions to regulations are warranted and whether EPA can otherwise support the efforts of AFO operators to protect water quality.

EPA is looking for a diverse range of qualified candidates, with applications due on Jan. 2, 2024. If interested in serving, please reach out to Miquela Hanselman at mhanselman@nmpf.org. The announcement can be found here.

NMPF Promotes FARM Program Efforts to Track Antibiotic Use in Livestock

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

NMPF extolled the FARM antibiotic stewardship program in comments filed with the FDA on Oct. 31 as a means of overseeing and promoting the judicious use of antimicrobial products in dairy cattle.

Our comments were filed with FDA related to the Reagan Udall Foundation summary report “Establishing a Draft Framework for a Public-Private Partnership to Support the Tracking of Antimicrobial Use in Food-Producing Animals,” released this summer. The Reagan-Udall Foundation for the Food and Drug Administration is an independent 501(c)(3) organization created by Congress to modernize medical and veterinary product development and oversight.

NMPF comments addressed:

  • The role of the National Dairy FARM Program in promoting the judicious and responsible use of antimicrobials by U.S. dairy farmers;
  • The important requirements of confidentiality, voluntary participation, and data aggregation for any collection of antimicrobial use data, and;
  • Response to specific FDA requests about cost estimates and oversight.

November CWT-Assisted Dairy Export Sales Totaled 5.4 Million Pounds

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

CWT member cooperatives secured 43 contracts in November, adding 4.6 million pounds of American-type cheeses, 231,000 pounds of butter, and 525,000 pounds of cream cheese to CWT-assisted sales in 2023. In milk equivalent, this is equal to 52.1 million pounds of milk on a milkfat basis. These products will go to customers in Asia and Middle East-North Africa, and will be shipped from November 2023 through February 2024.

CWT-assisted 2023 dairy product sales contracts year-to-date total 46.1 million pounds of American-type cheese, 1.1 million pounds of butter, 26,000 pounds of anhydrous milkfat, 8.3 million pounds of cream cheese and 39 million pounds of whole milk powder. This brings the total milk equivalent for the year to 801.6 million pounds on a milkfat basis.

Exporting dairy products is critical to the viability of dairy farmers and their cooperatives across the country. Whether or not a cooperative is actively engaged in exporting cheese, butter, anhydrous milkfat, cream cheese, or whole milk powder, moving products into world markets is essential. CWT provides a means to move domestic dairy products to overseas markets by helping to overcome U.S. dairy’s trade disadvantages.

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.