Signup for the 2021 Dairy Margin Coverage begins on Tuesday, Oct. 13. NMPF’s Senior Vice President of Communications, Alan Bjerga, breaks down how DMC provided effective disaster assistance for farmers, and why 2021 is shaping up to be a year when participation will be important for all dairy producers. On RFD-TV.
https://www.rfdtv.com/story/42746824/national-milk-producers-federation-on-the-2021-dairy-margin-coverage-program
The National Milk Producers Federation submitted comments supporting the United States Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) proposal on the Use of Radio Frequency Identification Tags as Official Identification in Cattle and Bison. APHIS has proposed to require the use of official 840-RFID tags for all dairy cattle involved in interstate commerce starting Jan. 1, 2023.
“We commend USDA-APHIS for taking this next step in moving animal identification forward, with the use of RFID tags for official animal identification for dairy cattle,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. “A national animal identification system can provide immediate access to relevant information in an animal disease or food safety crisis that could endanger the entire dairy chain, while protecting farmers’ privacy.”
The U.S. dairy industry has long advocated modernizing animal ID and disease traceability systems. Farmer organizations including NMPF, the American Jersey Cattle Association, Holstein Association USA, Inc., National Association of Animal Breeders, National Dairy Herd Information Association and Dairy Calf and Heifer Association formed a group called IDairy to collectively advance official mandatory animal identification to aid disease traceability.
IDairy in received a USDA-APHIS cooperative agreement on premise registration and animal ID education that propelled the use of RFID tags in the U.S. dairy industry. Since 2009, the National Dairy FARM Program: Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Program has also recommend use of official 840-RFID tags for all dairy cattle.
Animal ID and disease traceability needs may be different for other livestock sectors, so NMPF encouraged APHIS to carefully consider comments from those other livestock industries when finalizing requirements and implementation timelines.
Dear Dr. Hahn –
Sorry to bother you at such a busy time, but we need to talk. We’re guessing that 2020 wasn’t what you expected, dealing with COVID vaccines and a host of other pressing concerns. It’s been crazy for us too. But faith and friends can help you through, no matter how big or small the troubles may be. We hope you’ve felt supported through these challenging times.
We’ve noticed that recently, FDA has been getting more active on topics beyond COVID-19, in some cases even revisiting issues that have lain dormant from previous decades in the spirit of completing unfinished business. That made us think it was time to remind you about something you promised you’d deal with back in November, before everything turned upside down. At your FDA confirmation hearing, Senator Tammy Baldwin asked you whether and when FDA under your leadership would soon start enforcing labeling standards that reserve dairy terms for real dairy products, not the plant-based imposters that are posing an increasing problem for public health. You said you supported “clear, transparent, and understandable labeling for the American people” and that you would “very much” look into it.
How is that going? Any way we could help? We understand that FDA has kicked fake dairy deception down the road for decades, but the problem is only growing, public-health experts are growing concerned, and it isn’t a heavy lift for the FDA to do what’s not only true to its mission but also what’s legally required. In fact, we have provided an entire road map proposal that offers a clear guide to resolution – one that is well-grounded in First Amendment law, would ensure that consumers know what products are and aren’t nutritionally, and even could allow plant-based “milks” to continue dairy terms in some instances, with proper qualifiers that have long been established in FDA regulations to clearly distinguish them from dairy.
We had been very hopeful, based on your pledge, that this would be the year this problem could finally be solved. Since it’s late in 2020 – and who knows what the next few months might be like? — we thought we should check in.
We’re cheering for you to take action. FDA commissioner is never an easy job, and 2020’s been a challenge for the ages. But since fake milk has long been crucially important to dairy farmers – in places like Wisconsin, in Michigan, in Pennsylvania, in Minnesota, and all across the United States – we thought this might be a good time to remind you of this promise.
We’re happy to chat further because this simple matter can be resolved soon, to the benefit of everyone. Well, maybe not marketers of dishonest products, but they’ve had their day. Say hi to everyone at FDA for us, there’s never enough bandwidth on Zoom to talk to everyone we’d like to. Good luck with the rest of the year!
With Regards,
The National Milk Producers Federation
Cooperatives Working Together in September assisted member cooperatives in capturing 37 contracts to sell 1.7 million pounds of American-type cheeses, one million pounds of butter, 749,572 pounds of whole milk powder, and 875,235 pounds of cream cheese. The products will be going to customers in 11 countries in Asia, the Middle East, North Africa and Central and South America during the months of September 2020 through February 2021.
These contracts bring year’s total CWT-assisted product sales contracts to 78.1 million pounds. That includes of 26 million pounds of cheese, 8 million pounds of butter, 36.2 million pounds of whole milk powder, 2 million pounds of anhydrous milkfat, and 5.9 million pounds of cream cheese. These transactions will move the equivalent of 784 million pounds of milk on a milkfat basis overseas.
Assisting 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 impacts 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 at http://www.cwt.coop/membership.
The FARM Program staff and industry experts will lead a series of quick, 30-minute conversations for producer audiences to learn more about FARM program components, expectations and resources. This series will be held weekly beginning on Wednesday, Nov. 4.
Feedback from the 20-farmer member FARM Farmer Advisory Council suggested that quick Q&As about the FARM program, no longer requiring a physical event, would be helpful to broaden awareness and answer frequently asked questions about the program. Each conversation will be streamed live via Zoom and on the FARM program Facebook page. After the livestream, the recordings and supplementary materials will be stored on the FARM site here.
Participants will discuss four program areas of FARM, Animal Care, Antibiotic Stewardship, Environmental Stewardship and Workforce Development, as well as the farmer’s role within the program. Most importantly, this is a key opportunity for farmers to get their questions about FARM answered directly from staff. For more information, please contact the FARM team at dairyfarm@nmpf.org.
NMPF continues to lead opposition to unjustified European Union (EU) attempts to ban U.S. dairy producers from using common terms for cheeses and limit market opportunities for U.S. dairy manufacturers and exporters, with increased traction on Capitol Hill.
A bipartisan coalition from the House of Representatives will soon begin circulating a letter to the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) supporting American-made food and wine exports labeled with commonly used terms. Reps. Jim Costa (D-CA), Jodey Arrington (R-TX), Angie Craig (D-MN), Dusty Johnson (R-SD), Ron Kind (D-WI) and Mike Gallagher (R-WI) are seeking signatures for their letter that urges USTR and USDA to advance a consistent trade policy that prioritizes securing specific market access assurances for products that use common food terms, traditional terms, or the names of legitimate plant and grape varietals in all trade-related discussions.
NMPF applauded a similar letter sent by 61 senators this summer.
The USTR also made explicit note of the EU’s anti-trade GI campaign in an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal in August, writing, “The EU uses its trade deals in many cases not to advance trade liberalization, but to force other countries to adopt thinly veiled protectionist measures like ‘geographic indications,’ which prohibit the use of common labeling terms for wine and food items produced outside the EU.”
More information on how the EU’s campaign would harm American farmers and processors alike can be found in a recent Hoard’s Dairyman op-ed written by Jaime Castaneda, NMPF Senior Vice President for Policy Strategy and International Trade.
NMPF has also worked with the U.S. Dairy Export Council and the Consortium for Common Food Names to develop a one-page fact sheet showing what’s at risk for U.S. dairy if the EU is left unchecked, making it clear that this is an issue to which everyone in dairy should pay attention to.
As part of its commitment to service during a challenging year for dairy farmers, NMPF in September created a CFAP 2 resource guide and launched a natural disaster resource page to help farmers respond to ongoing crises.
NMPF’s CFAP 2 resource guide, distributed to members Sept. 21, helps farmers understand and apply for the latest round of government disaster assistance. The toolbox includes a breakdown of what the program includes for dairy, as well as links to relevant application resources. Dairy producers affected by market disruptions due to COVID-19 are likely eligible for direct support. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is accepting CFAP 2 applications now through Dec. 11.
That effort came on the heels of a new webpage launched Sept. 15 offering resources and information to help dairy farmers better prepare for and respond to natural disasters. The page includes information compiled from trusted sources on topics ranging from fire safety for livestock to on-farm hurricane preparation and the USDA’s Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool. Because emergencies and disasters can occur at any time and without warning regardless of where a farm is located, NMPF is urging all dairy producers to consider developing or updating Emergency Action Plans on their farms.
“2020 has been difficult enough with the COVID-19 pandemic. But as with COVID-related disruptions, NMPF is here to help its members and the broader dairy community,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF.
NMPF sent a letter to USDA and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) on Sept. 23, asking the agencies to work together to purchase nonfat dry milk powder from U.S. farmers to donate to nations both lacking sufficient food supplies and without the ability to commercially meet those needs.
The letter is in-line with NMPF efforts to share U.S. dairy products worldwide. Milk powder is a high-quality protein source and a versatile dairy ingredient that can help fulfill key nutrient needs for healthy child development and adult wellness. NMPF has offered to help USDA and USAID to ensure that nonfat dry milk powder is quickly purchased and then efficiently donated to our international partners to meet these needs.
NMPF submitted comments Sept. 14 supporting the petition to manufacture Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) Vaccine in the United States as the next step in further protecting dairy herds from a damaging FMD outbreak. The petition calls for a vaccine manufactured from an attenuated, leaderless strain of the FMD virus, which would prevent the risk of a vaccine-induced outbreak from vaccine virus replication, shedding and transmission. NMPF states in the comments that “the safety of manufacturing an FMD vaccine in the U.S. is paramount to protect the health of the U.S. dairy industry.”
NMPF has led advocacy for FMD preparedness. NMPF’s Board of Directors in 2014 endorsed FMD preparedness priorities that included modernizing the FMD vaccine bank and developing the next generation FMD vaccines with production in the United States. As a result of 2018 Farm Bill funding, USDA announced in July an initial purchase of FMD vaccine antigen as a step in modernizing the FMD vaccine bank, making vaccine production the next step.
NMPF looks forward to continuing to work with USDA to further protect not only our own herds, but domestic and international confidence in purchasing U.S. dairy products. The full comments can be read here.
NMPF is pleased with FDA’s response to an Interstate Milk Shipment (IMS) listing issue for dairy processing plants that change ownership. On Sept. 28 FDA responded to an NMPF letter challenging an agency Memorandum of Information (M-I) which stated that a change in ownership of a Grade “A” plant would trigger revocation of the IMS status and require the facility to be re-inspected and re-rated prior to being relisted.
The M-I, drafted five years ago, held the potential for real problems for Grade “A” dairy plants in situations in which ownership was changing, especially as, according to the M-I, after delisting “the facility would need to await the issuance of a new permit to operate after the facility is re-inspected and re-rated.” The process, as described, could take a week or more depending on state workload and staff availability, during which time the facility for would be shut down.
After identifying 58 dairy plants and 56 Bulk Tank Units (BTU’s) that could be impacted by this complicated process, NMPF wrote to FDA to question the validity of the M-I and the legal authority it was based upon. NMPF also reminded FDA of the challenging times the industry is facing, an argument for flexibility. Finally, NMPF reminded FDA of a recent interpretation by the Department of Justice that guidance documents, such as M-I’s, should not be treated as creating legal rights or obligations.
FDA in its response agreed that the process needed to be streamlined and that the dairy industry should not suffer economic hardship due to a change of ownership. FDA has agreed to rescind the language. NMFP questioned and is informing FDA Milk Specialists, State Regulatory/Rating Agencies, State Rating Officers and dairy industry stakeholders to provide immediate clarification.
Due to the 2020 Joint Annual Meeting moving from an in-person to a virtual format, the 2020 NMPF Cheese Quality Competition is also going virtual. Because of travel restrictions and social distancing requirements, our cheese judges will evaluate select cheese classes at locations in California, Illinois, and Wisconsin on Oct. 15. Key changes this year include:
NMPF looks forward to having a great cheese contest that will showcase the wonderful cheeses our members make. More detailed instructions can be found here. Questions may be directed to jjonker@nmpf.org or mhanselman@nmpf.org.
The monthly Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program milk price-feed cost margin for August was $10.83 per cwt. This was down $1.58 per cwt. from the July margin but still well above the $9.50 per cwt. needed to trigger payment under the DMC. The milk price dropped by $1.70 per cwt., from $20.50 per cwt. in July to $18.80 per cwt. in August. The feed-cost calculation for August was $0.12 per cwt. lower than in July, mostly on a lower corn price. The DMC feed cost has been dropping every month since April.
The USDA-sponsored DMC Decision Tool is currently anticipating a further drop in the margin to $8.26 per cwt. in September driven by lower prices, which would generate significant payments to the higher levels of coverage for the third month this year. Following this, the margin is expected to rebound above $9.50 per cwt. for the remainder of this year.
Signup for the DMC program for 2021 coverage will begin Oct. 12 and will run through Dec. 11. The USDA DMC Decision Tool is currently projecting the margin will begin to drop below $9.50 per cwt. starting in February next year and continue to drop at least through June. Enrolling in the program for next year is strongly recommended for those operations not already signed up under the previous multi-year enrollment option.
The DMC information page on NMPF’s website offers a variety of educational resources to help farmers make better use of the program.
