The coronavirus crisis is far from over, but the food supply chain has adapted effectively, said Clay Detlefsen, chief counsel for the National Milk Producers Federation and the private-sector chair of the Food and Agricultural Sector Coordinating Council, in an NMPF podcast.

Early challenges in acquiring enough Personal Protective Equipment and redesigning workplaces to keep workers safe have been largely met, but the continued circulation of the virus itself makes it challenging for businesses to be completely confident disruptions may be avoided, Detlefsen said. Progress continues in making sure supplies are manufactured in adequate quantities, as well as in understanding how the virus is spread and how to prevent it.

“We’ve got the food industry on the right track. It wasn’t easy. It won’t be easy to keep us there, especially if this mushrooms this fall with the flu virus mixing into the equation,” Detlefsen said. “We’ve got our challenges ahead for sure. There’s no reason to celebrate, but there’s no reason to be pessimistic either. We will get through this.”

The Food and Agricultural Sector Coordinating Council was set up after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks to share information between government agencies and private businesses during crises that affect the U.S. food-supply chain. To listen to the full discussion, click here. You can also find this and other NMPF podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.  Broadcast outlets may use the MP3 file. Please attribute information to NMPF.

 

Dairy farmers are eligible for direct support through USDA’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). CFAP offers direct financial assistance to agricultural producers, providing them the ability to weather the economic uncertainty caused by COVID-19. Dairy producers not enrolling in the CFAP will miss out on millions of dollars of financial aid aimed at helping them deal with low prices in 2020.

USDA is accepting CFAP applications through Friday, September 11. Visit www.farmers.gov/cfap to determine your eligibility and to apply for assistance.

 

Apply for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program

USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) offers multiple ways for you to apply for CFAP to meet your business needs. These include:

• Apply Online: Producers with an eAuthentication account can now apply for CFAP via USDA’s CFAP Application Portal. Step-by-step instructions are available in the CFAP Application Portal User Guide. Applications are completed, electronically signed, and submitted directly to a local Service Center through this online system. Producers interested in creating an eAuthentication account should visit gov/sign-in to learn more. Producers without an eAuthentication account also have the option of signing and sharing their CFAP applications online using our new document signature solutions initiated by Service Center staff.

• Manually Complete Applications: Producers who are interested in filling out the CFAP application manually can download the application form, AD-3114, to fill out and return to the FSA office at their local USDA Service Center. If you need more space, you should use the AD-3114A continuation form. Instructions for form AD-3114 and AD-3114 continuation are available for producers to reference when filling out both forms.

• Fill Application with Payment Calculator: USDA’s CFAP Application Generator and Payment Calculator is an Excel workbook that allows producers to input information specific to their operation to determine estimated payments and populate the application form, which you can then print, sign, and submit to the FSA office at your local USDA Service Center. Microsoft Excel is required to use this workbook. A video preview with more information is available here.

 

Assistance with Applying

While most USDA Service Centers are open for business by phone appointment only, FSA is working with producers by phone and using email and online tools to process CFAP applications. Please call the FSA office at your local USDA Service Center to schedule an appointment if you’d like assistance or have questions. Producers can find contact information for their local USDA Service Center here.

A CFAP Call Center is available for producers who would like additional one-on-one support with the CFAP application process. Please call 877-508-8364 to speak directly with a USDA employee ready to offer assistance. The CFAP Call Center can provide service to non-English speaking customers.

 

Supplemental Resources:

• USDA’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program: Frequently Asked Questions by Dairy Farmers
• What Dairy Farmers Need to Know About the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program
• CFAP for Dairy Producers Fact Sheet
• Coronavirus Food Assistance Program FAQ

Visit www.farmers.gov/cfap for additional information about CFAP and www.nmpf.org/coronavirus for a full listing of coronavirus resources for dairy farmers and co-ops. Please email info@nmpf.org with questions or comments about CFAP and how it is being administered by your local FSA office.

A bipartisan group of 25 Senators today sent a letter identifying challenges with implementing several dairy-related provisions in the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Underscoring USMCA’s importance to the dairy industry, the letter asks the U.S. government to use USMCA’s enforcement measures to ensure full compliance with the trade deal.

The letter, led by Sens. Tina Smith (D-MN) and Mike Crapo (R-ID), was sent to the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It reads, in part:

“As negotiated, the USMCA will create new export opportunities for America’s dairy industry and creates an equitable playing field for American dairy exports in Mexico and Canada. Given the importance of these provisions to our dairy farmers and to American dairy exports, we ask that you use USMCA’s enforcement measures to hold our trading partners accountable to their trade commitments. It is imperative that Canada and Mexico deliver upon their agreed upon commitments related to dairy products.”

The U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) commend the coalition of Senators for standing up for America’s dairy farmers, processors and exporters and pressing for fair and full implementation of USMCA’s dairy provisions.

“Canada has already begun implementing USMCA in a way that thwarts its market access promises and prevents U.S. dairy from making full use of the benefits that Congress and the Administration fought so hard to secure. There are also unanswered questions concerning how Mexico will translate its commitments to safeguard common name cheeses into action. These are unresolved concerns that affect everyday dairy farmers and workers across our industry. I appreciate Senator Smith and Senator Crapo’s proactive engagement and leadership on this letter underscoring that USMCA provides the tools necessary to take enforcement measures now,” said Tom Vilsack, president and CEO of USDEC.

“Timely and complete enforcement of USMCA’s dairy-related provisions will allow America’s dairy industry to harness the full potential of this modernized trade agreement. This letter sends a strong message to Canada and Mexico: Efforts to maintain unjust trade practices or block market access will not be tolerated. This bipartisan support for fairer dairy trade in North America also demonstrates not only the importance of exports to America’s dairy farmers, but the key role that dairy plays in our national economy. Thank you, Senator Smith and Senator Crapo, for your leadership and support of a critical industry,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF.

Earlier this month, a bipartisan coalition of 104 Representatives also sent a letter urging the U.S. government to fully enforce USMCA.

Farming isn’t short of challenges these days. From record price volatility to tragic weather events to the ongoing crisis of coronavirus that’s shaping every aspect of lives and economies, milk producers face so many unprecedented situations that the word “unprecedented” itself seems inadequate to describe the full scope of the situation.

But for most dairy farmers, at least some of their burden is lessened by their membership in a cooperative, which provides them with services, support and representation on important issues. That membership gives them more time and energy to focus on what they do best: operate their farms to provide the high-quality products the nation and world needs.

Dairy co-ops aren’t all the same. They range from nationwide powerhouses to local groups with small customer bases, from Fortune 500 companies to regional treasures. But all of them are much more than just the truck that stops to pick up a farmer’s milk. (Although dairy cooperatives do add up to a lot of trucks — according to a twice-a-decade USDA survey, cooperatives handled 85 percent of U.S. milk in 2017, a number that’s held steady for 25 years.) They’re also a farmer’s:

• Milk marketing agent and product developer, seeking the best buyers and ensuring that milk becomes a product a consumer wants to buy;
• Supply-chain manager, helping provide lower cost goods and services that make farms more successful;
• Financial analyst and economist, helping farmers manage risk and understand milk pricing issues;
• Technical expert providing input on best practices, including animal care, environmental and other programs, both public and private, working on behalf of all cooperative members to address customer and marketplace concerns; and, the co-op also is a
• Voice on policy, navigating state and federal laws and regulations to work for positive solutions.

All of this is directed by the farmers – the cooperative’s owners – through democratic voting structures that give everyone in a cooperative a voice within the body they own, one that previous generations of farmers have set up to fight for them. That’s the truest, most basic form of representative government, one in keeping with the most cherished American political traditions. Cooperatives give farmers a vehicle to help themselves by effectively performing tasks on behalf of their members that would be more difficult – or impossible – to manage alone. That frees up farmers to face the challenges that inevitably fall on their own shoulders – the tasks of caring for their cows, building their businesses, leading their own communities, and serving the world through the essential products they provide.

These days, doing all that takes a lot. Cooperatives have proven their value this year in large, and dramatic, ways – by helping to better align supply and demand that contributed to a record price rally and turned some very dark days into days that, while still difficult, have improved farmers’ financial standing. They have proven their value in thousands of small, individual ways as well, from timely market insights to the day-to-day, basic task of ensuring that milk producers have a guaranteed market at a time when farmers are increasingly realizing that can’t always be taken for granted.

Farming can be a lonely calling. But co-op farmers don’t face it all alone. Especially in dairy, where cooperative membership is the norm, farmers routinely pool resources, collect expertise, and provide services that help one another succeed. And in that spirit, they then can speak with a united voice on matters that affect them all. We at the National Milk Producers Federation are proud to be the voice of dairy cooperatives in Washington, harnessing the power of farmers who individually meet the challenges they face each day – and together contribute to the successes of all.

NMPF Senior Vice President of Membership Services and Strategic Initiatives Chris Galen discusses the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) and how dairy farmers can enroll, as well as concerns regarding the implementation of USMCA on Dairy Radio Now.

Dairy prices that plunged, then skyrocketed, have settled – for a moment. But volatility should be expected as long as COVID-19 makes its way through the economy, said Peter Vitaliano, chief economist for the National Milk Producers Federation.

“It has been indeed a roller coaster,” Vitaliano said in an NMPF podcast released today. Vitaliano, who writes NMPF’s monthly Dairy Market Report, said the extent of coronavirus-related closures this fall and how much farmers increase milk production will remain significant questions for the rest of the year. To subscribe to the Dairy Market Report, click here.

To listen to the full discussion, click here. You can also find this and other NMPF podcasts on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and SoundCloud. Broadcast outlets may use the MP3 file. Please attribute information to NMPF.

 

A bipartisan coalition of House lawmakers today sent a letter urging the U.S. government to proactively enforce the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement’s (USMCA) dairy-related provisions. This letter is being applauded by the U.S. dairy industry, as the benefits that USMCA secures for America’s dairy farmers, processors and exporters will only be realized if the deal is fully enforced.

Representatives Ron Kind (D-WI), Tom Reed (R-NY), Collin Peterson (D-MN), Glenn “GT” Thompson (R -PA), Anthony Brindisi (D-NY), Russ Fulcher (R-ID), Xochitl Torres Small (D-NM), and Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH) led this effort. In total, 104 members of Congress signed the letter.

“A strong demand for U.S. dairy exports abroad drives economic growth and creates jobs here at home. USMCA is designed to allow the U.S. industry to fulfill this demand from two of our largest dairy customers and we cannot allow Canada or Mexico to undermine the important gains secured in this trade deal. We are working alongside Congress, the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to ensure Canada and Mexico are held accountable to their trade commitments,” said Tom Vilsack, president and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council.

According to the International Trade Commission, if USMCA is implemented as negotiated, U.S. dairy exports are projected to increase by more than $314 million a year.

“The support for today’s bipartisan letter demonstrates the incredible impact the U.S. dairy industry has across the country, supporting our rural economies and fulfilling an essential role in feeding America. USMCA is a modernized trade deal that represents new opportunities for our farmers and processors after years of rural recession and the new challenges presented by the current crisis. We must utilize USMCA’s enforcement mechanisms to bring home its hard-fought wins for America’s dairy farmers,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of National Milk Producers Federation.

Specific provisions of concern to the U.S. dairy industry highlighted in this letter include Canada’s administration of its dairy Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQ), the full and transparent elimination of Classes 6 and 7 and related dairy pricing program disciplines, and the enforcement of the side letter agreements with

Mexico that protect market access for U.S. common names cheeses. Urgent enforcement is needed as Canada and Mexico have already demonstrated reluctance to adhere to their trade obligations, as exhibited by Canada’s recently announced TRQ allocations that run counter to the intent of USCMA to expand access to the Canadian dairy market.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans Committee’s scientific report reaffirms dairy’s important role in a healthy diet, but government officials need to take into account evolving science that shows the benefits of dairy fats when it releases its final report, said Miquela Hanselman, NMPF’s manager for regulatory affairs, during a virtual meeting of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services discussing the report.

“The committee, correctly in our view, maintained dairy as its own group and did not allow the inclusion of any plant-based beverages or foods other than fortified soy beverage,” Hanselman said. “Furthermore, the committee gave a nod to dairy’s nutrient density, and included it in food recommendations developed for 6-24 months.

Still, there’s work to do, she added.

“The Committee did fall short on one topic: the recognition of the newer science on dairy fats. Although we are pleased that the committee didn’t lower the saturated fats daily limit, we wish they had included the newer science on dairy fats in their recommendation. While the committee did acknowledge the need for more research and analysis on fat sources and food matrices, they failed to include the breadth of science that already exists in this area in their review. For this reason, we urge USDA and HHS to review the scientific literature on dairy foods at all fat levels and draw their own conclusions.”

The final 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans are expected to be released later this year. Dairy advocates have until Aug. 13 to submit written comments on the guidelines by joining NMPF’s call to action here. A copy of Hanselman’s testimony is here. Full audio of Hanselman’s testimony is here. Broadcast outlets may use the MP3 file. Please attribute information to NMPF.

This article was written by NMPF Trade Manager Tony Rice for United Dairymen of Arizona’s Fall 2020 magazine.

As 2020 began, America’s dairy farmers and dairy cooperatives looked forward to expanded trade opportunities. The recent accord reached on the Japan Phase One agreement, the soon-to-be-completed Phase One trade agreement with China, and the imminent final passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) all represented hope for our industry after years of low milk prices and a persistent rural recession.

For Arizona, the modernized trade rules ushered in by USMCA were particularly important, as they helped restore certainty to our trade relationship with Mexico, a more than $150 million market for Arizona dairy exports in 2019.[1]

What no one anticipated at the start of this year was a global pandemic that would create immense challenges for U.S. dairy exports to markets around the world, including Mexico. Unfortunately, the Mexican government, under the leadership of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has compounded these difficulties by also raising new concerns about potential new trade barriers and heeding calls from some domestic producers to seek to limit competition through protectionist policies. To add insult to injury, a few members of the Mexican Congress are also bowing to pressures from a single farm group in Mexico and, as such, are revisiting a push to impose import taxes on dairy products – a notion that dairy has successfully defeated before and will again.

As the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the spring, the U.S. dairy industry saw a dramatic drop in dairy exports to Mexico, as demand normally driven by schools, restaurants and other food service establishments fell. The value of U.S. dairy exports to Mexico in May fell nearly 30% when compared to the year before.

The flow of U.S. dairy exports was, for a time, restricted even further as the Mexican Ministry of Health imposed limitations on the issuance of import permits, a step that further hindered already tight dairy supply chains. NMPF, working closely with UDA and USDEC, stepped in immediately to coordinate with government officials on both sides of the border to keep U.S. dairy products flowing uninterrupted and Mexican grocery store shelves stocked.

Additional challenges quickly emerged as Mexico published a discriminatory draft cheese Conformity Assessment Procedure (CAP) that threatens to introduce more complications for U.S. cheese exports due to proposed new testing requirements that would treat imports differently than domestic products and subject U.S. cheeses to burdensome testing requirements. This CAP conflicts with USMCA’s intent to improve trade flows. It’s also inconsistent with Mexico’s international trade obligations to provide equitable treatment to imported goods.

Unfortunately, the Mexican government has yet to implement regulations enabling it to enforce the negotiated side letters in USMCA that establish protections for American-made cheeses with common names, such as parmesan and gouda. Enforcement of these agreements is critical to secure the full range of protections for common cheeses negotiated within USMCA, especially as Mexico and the European Union move toward implementation of the trade agreement reached in 2018.

NMPF, working hand in hand with UDA and USDEC, tackles each of these trade roadblocks, is continually advocated for Arizona dairy interests and exports by remaining engaged with the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other government and industry stakeholders. We will continue to fight for trade policies that break down trade barriers, strengthen the U.S. working relationship with Mexico, and bring home tangible benefits to the rural communities in Arizona and beyond that continue the essential work of producing high-quality American-made dairy products.

[1] Per UDA press release: https://azgovernor.gov/governor/news/2020/04/governor-ducey-requests-export-assistance-arizonas-dairy-farmers

 

The release of the scientific report of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee has brought predictable criticism from dairy’s detractors, annoyed that a high-nutrient food they dislike for various, easy-to-debunk reasons provides important benefits throughout life and offers essential nutrients Americans otherwise lack without it.

The committee’s scientific report, which is open for public comment through this Thursday, is explicit about dairy’s benefits. The panel report also provides a road map showing what the next dietary guidelines panel needs to see to emphasize dairy’s dietary benefits even further. The panel report is worth a thank-you note – and a nudge forward in evaluation of fats — from dairy advocates. In fact, a letter is all set up and ready to go, the only catch being that it has to be sent by Thursday.

Some highlights from the 835-page report released last month:

• Dairy is recommended for consumption within all three healthy eating patterns featured in the report, with three servings per day recommended in the Healthy U.S. style eating pattern and Healthy Vegetarian Style patterns and two servings per day in the Healthy-Mediterranean pattern;

• Americans need more dairy in their diets. 88 percent of them fall short of the panel’s recommendations. That includes 79 percent of 9-13-year-olds, who rely heavily on the school-lunch program to meet nutritional needs.
• The committee recognized milk as a nutrient-rich beverage that contributes positively to under-consumed nutrients, including potassium, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, vitamins A and D, and others;
• Low-fat and nonfat dairy foods are recommended as nutrient-dense building blocks of a healthy diet; and
• In the committee’s first-ever recommendations for birth through 24 months, yogurt and cheese are recognized as complementary feeding options for infants ages 6-12 months, and dairy foods (milk, cheese and yogurt) are included in healthy eating patterns for toddlers 12-24 months.

The report, which the federal government will use when it sets its official Dietary Guidelines for Americans later this year, could have gone even further. Despite mounting evidence of the neutral to beneficial health impact of milkfat, the committee did not fully address the issue. This is disappointing, but the report does still takes a step in the right direction by laying groundwork for dairy’s health benefits to be recognized even more fully in the next dietary guidelines. Tucked on page 791 is a recommendation to:

Examine the effects of different food sources of saturated fats, including animal (e.g., butter, lard) and plant (e.g., palm vs coconut oils) sources, different food matrices that encompass saturated fats (e.g., saturated fats in cheese vs yogurt), and different production techniques (e.g., refined deodorized bleached vs virgin coconut oil) on health outcomes.

Translation: Recent studies showing that dairy fats may be higher-quality and more beneficial than other types of fats are intriguing, but more of them are needed to upend at least five decades of conventional wisdom. That’s the kind of statement from which nutrition scientists can take their cues – and sends a strong signal to them, and to government officials, that it’s time for the long-overdue re-evaluation of whole milk that’s needed to boost healthy diets.

But as we continue building toward that end, it’s important to let the panel know its reaffirmation of dairy was noticed, even as science needs to be nudged forward. The National Milk Producers Federation has a call-to-action campaign on its website (you can go to it directly here) meant to help dairy advocates send the positive message the USDA and Department of Health and Human Services needs to receive as it finalizes the government guidelines. The comment deadline is Aug. 13.

Good things are going dairy’s way. Higher retail sales, along with a greater appreciation of dairy farmers and their cooperatives in a time of crisis, are reasons to be upbeat despite today’s challenges. The Dietary Guidelines are another help – and their improvement is a cause worth pursuing.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service once again approved the National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Animal Care Program’s animal welfare standards, determining that the program’s 4^th version meets the requirements of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Specification. FARM was the first animal-care program in the world to have its updated standards verified through this process.

“The ISO certification for the FARM Program demonstrates its importance and validates our industry’s commitment to animal care not only domestically but also in the world market,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation, which administers the FARM program.

The assessment to the ISO standard determines whether animal welfare programs meet international standards for animal care as set by an independent standards-setting organization. FARM was evaluated to ensure that the standards in Version 4.0 of its Animal Care program meet the highest quality in species-specific welfare practices.

The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and ISO work together to help farmers and programs like FARM standardize and implement their animal care guidelines. The OIE, the World Trade Organization-recognized body for setting animal health and welfare standards affecting international trade, adopted dairy cattle welfare standards in 2015.

FARM was the first livestock program in the world recognized for the technical specification in 2018. It repeated the USDA verification process to provide an additional level of assurance for the improvements made to the program in its fourth iteration. The verification by USDA signifies to FARM Program participants that its standards are among the best in the world; it also signals to consumers they can have confidence their dairy products were produced in accordance with the highest level of science-based animal care.