ORLANDO, FL – The board of the National Milk Producers Federation today set January 1, 2017, as the date for dairy farmers participating in the industry’s Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Animal Care Program to phase out the routine practice of tail docking.

At the Federation’s annual meeting here, the board approved a resolution hastening by five years the previously established 2022 deadline for discontinuing tail docking.  The resolution will be incorporated into the dozens of animal care measures designed for the FARM Program to ensure the consistent, optimal care of dairy cows in the United States.

“On this issue, the science, the advice of our technical experts and requests from our dairy customers and consumers are all aligned,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern. “Today’s action demonstrates that dairy producer-leaders want to be proactive, yet pragmatic, in addressing animal care concerns.”

NMPF started the FARM Animal Care Program in 2009 to highlight how much the dairy industry is doing to improve animal care. Dairy farmers supplying milk to dairy cooperatives and processors representing more than 90 percent of the nation’s milk supply now participate. The program demonstrates the commitment dairy producers have to providing quality care to their cows.

Also at the NMPF annual meeting, the FARM Animal Care Program unveiled new communications resources, including a revamped website and stepped-up social media engagement on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The new resources will help share stories of dedicated farmers, healthy cows and wholesome milk.

“While tail docking may be contentious for some, our producers have a great story to tell when it comes to animal care,” said Mulhern. “It is crucial that we share these stories and discuss animal care in a way that connects our values with those of our customers and consumers.”

The annual meeting will also feature on Tuesday an animal care panel discussion that includes representatives from Chobani, Walmart, Starbucks and Kroger.

For more information on the National Dairy FARM Animal Care Program, contact Emily Meredith at (703) 243-6111 or visit www.nationaldairyfarm.com.

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The National Milk Producers Federation, 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 30 cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S. milk supply, making NMPF the voice of more than 32,000 dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. Visit www.nmpf.org for more information.

ARLINGTON, VA – The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee today approved legislation backed by the National Milk Producers Federation allowing states to increase truck weights so that milk is shipped as quickly and as efficiently as possible.

The bipartisan amendment, offered by New York Republican Richard Hanna and Connecticut Democrat Elizabeth Esty, was added to a transportation bill that could reach the House floor later this fall. It was approved on a voice vote.

“Today’s amendment recognizes the unique needs of hauling milk,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern. “Milk is extremely perishable. Both the supply of it coming from farms, and the daily intake needs of processing plants, can fluctuate unpredictably. As a result, milk handling requirements sometimes conflict with limits on truck weights.”

To solve the problem, the Hanna-Esty amendment gives states the option to issue permits allowing milk haulers to increase their truck weights beyond Interstate Highway System limits. The permits would still need to comply with each state’s trucking laws.

“Timing is critical in moving milk to market,” Mulhern added. “This amendment recognizes the specific challenges in transporting milk and allows states to ensure that milk is delivered in a timely fashion while adhering to all transportation and food safety standards.”

Mulhern thanked Representatives Hanna and Esty for sponsoring the amendment and urged the House to take up the highway bill as soon as possible. 

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The National Milk Producers Federation, 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 more than 32,000 dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. Visit www.nmpf.org for more information.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Joanna Lidback, a dairy farmer from Westmore, Vt., told a panel of Senators on Capitol Hill today how important  biotechnology is to her family’s farm, explaining that the efficiencies of using biotech crops help sustain the business she and her husband own.

Lidback spoke before the Senate Agriculture Committee, outlining several reasons why she supports the use of genetically-modified crops, and does not support her home state’s mandatory GMO-labeling law.

“I am disappointed that my home state of Vermont passed a mandatory GMO-labeling law that is set to take effect next year,” she said before the committee.

Lidback, who runs a 200-acre farm with her husband and two sons, testified on behalf of dairy cooperative Agri-Mark, Inc., a member of the National Milk Producers Federation and the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives.

The Senate hearing Wednesday marked the fourth time in the past year that expert testimony to a congressional committee affirmed the overwhelming scientific consensus showing that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are safe for consumers and the environment. Senators also heard how vital biotechnology is to modern agriculture, as farmers strive to produce higher yields on less land, using fewer pesticides, limiting irrigation and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Lidback said that crops grown through this method are vital to sustaining her dairy, as they save her money and allow her to adequately care for her animals at all times of the year. Other farmers can tailor their growing method to what best suits their resources and soil requirements, she added.

“Biotechnology enables us to lessen the environmental impact that growing can have because less fertilizer and pesticides are used, which in turn means fewer times [on a tractor] over the soil with equipment, thereby cutting down on soil erosion and compaction as well as carbon footprint. Yields are typically higher and there are fewer weeds, growing a cleaner, more abundant crop,” she explained.

Lidback said non-GMO feed costs almost double than what she pays per ton now, which would cost her an extra $48,000 a year if that were her only option. Shipping and storage costs would also have to be factored in.

Lidback also spoke about the environmental effects of GMO crops. Through biotechnology, she said, farmers have been able to decrease the amount of pesticides they use – dispelling a common myth associated with GMOs.

“Biotechnology has brought us even more solutions for things like drought tolerance, improved nutrition, disease resistance and medical advancement, to name a few. It also could help us answer other issues such as citrus greening, American Chestnut tree blight, and maybe even human diseases like Ebola,” she said.

This is not Lidback’s first time before Congress. She testified on the same topic in front of the House Agriculture Committee back in March, and again before a House subcommittee in July 2014.

Lidback said the Vermont law is confusing and unnecessary for both producers and consumers. The law applies to some food and not others; the labels could confuse non-Vermont residents; and it will cost families more money at the check-out line. Taxpayer money is better used elsewhere, she argued.

“I generally do not believe in paying the higher premium for these foods because they provide no added nutritional or other health benefits and environmental benefits are arguable,” she concluded.

About Agri-Mark
Agri-Mark, with $952 million in 2013 sales, markets more than 300 million gallons of farm fresh milk each year for more than 1,200 dairy farm families in New England and New York. The cooperative is headquartered in Methuen, Mass., has been marketing milk for dairy farmers since 1913, and actively represents their legislative interests in the Northeast and in Washington, D.C.
Agri-Mark owns three cheese and dairy product manufacturing facilities in Vermont and New York State and has a butter/nonfat powder plant in Massachusetts. Agri-Mark has also invested in operations to manufacture and market valuable whey proteins globally while also marketing fresh fluid milk from its local farm families to the region’s largest dairy processors.

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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 more than 32,000 dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF’s activities, visit our website at www.nmpf.org.

ARLINGTON, VA – While the United States has reduced support mechanisms for dairy farmers in recent years, a wide range of foreign dairy subsidies remain, limiting the U.S. industry’s ability to sell more of its products overseas, the National Milk Producers Federation said today.  

In testimony before the House Agriculture Committee, NMPF said these foreign dairy support programs impede an industry that has gone from exporting less than $1 billion in dairy products in 2000 to $7.1 billion last year.

“Trade agreements have helped make this possible by lowering and removing barriers to our exports,” said Jaime Castaneda, right, NMPF’s senior vice president. “However, they have done little to constrain the use of domestic supports in the dairy sector or agriculture as a whole.”

Foreign dairy subsidies take different forms, ranging from direct aid, to import protections and regulatory measures designed to give foreign dairy producers an advantage over U.S. competitors.

According to Castaneda, the 28-nation European Union is the biggest provider of direct dairy support, offering cash payments, storage subsidies, price supports and, most recently, emergency aid to producers to counter low prices. In addition, the EU is attempting to limit dairy imports further by blocking the use of commonly used product names outside prescribed areas.

For example, Castaneda said, an American producer of feta or parmesan cheese can no longer sell those products within the European Union, even though the names have been widely used for many years. “What better way to impede or prevent imports of a given product than to ban the use of its name?” he said.

Other major countries providing direct support to their dairy farmers include Canada, India, New Zealand, and Japan, among many others, Castaneda said.

“While the United States has reduced its dairy subsidies and support mechanisms, other countries have maintained and expanded theirs,” Castaneda said.

In addition to his NMPF role, Castaneda works closely with the U.S. Dairy Export Council in promoting the U.S. dairy industry’s interests globally. 

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The National Milk Producers Federation, 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 more than 32,000 dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies. Visit www.nmpf.org for more information.

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The dairy industry today said it is “critical” that Congress solve the trade dispute over country-of-origin labeling to head off damaging new tariffs on U.S. dairy exports by Canada and Mexico.

In a letter to the Senate, the National Milk Producers Federation, U.S. Dairy Export Council and International Dairy Foods Association expressed “growing apprehension” that retaliatory tariffs are drawing closer under a finding that said parts of the U.S. country-of-origin labeling (COOL) law violate World Trade Organization rules.

“(We) urge the Senate to pass legislation to bring the U.S. into compliance with its WTO obligations without further delay,” the groups said.

Last spring, the WTO ruled against the U.S. COOL program, saying that Canada and Mexico could retaliate against U.S. exports in response. American dairy products have been on Canada’s target list for retaliatory tariffs resulting from the ruling.

“Retaliation against dairy products would come at a particularly challenging time for our industry, given the currently depressed global dairy market…” said NMPF, USDEC and IDFA. “Multiple cooperatives have already been faced at times this year with oversupplies of milk, causing them to dispose of excess milk at a loss. Retaliatory tariffs would back up exports further onto the U.S. market during this time of overly abundant milk supplies.”

Any congressional solution, the groups added, must satisfy Canada and Mexico because those two countries would retain their right to retaliate against the United States until a lengthy WTO arbitration process is concluded. “U.S. dairy producers and processors cannot risk getting mired down in that drawn-out process,” they said.

The three groups asked the Senate to work together “to put in place an outcome that Canada and Mexico agree resolves this issue.”

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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 nearly 32,000 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 U.S. Dairy Export Council prohibits discrimination on the basis of age, disability, national origin, race, color, religion, creed, gender, sexual orientation, political beliefs, marital status, military status, and arrest or conviction record.

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 550 companies representing 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 run nearly 600 plant operations, 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. IDFA can be found at www.idfa.org. 

OCTOBER 8, 2015 — After an intense week of final negotiations in Atlanta, representatives from the 12 countries involved in the Pacific Rim trade deal reached a final agreement early Monday morning, ending more than five years of work on the massive agreement known officially as the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Details of the final agreement are slowly emerging, and NMPF is examining them to assess the package’s overall impact on the U.S. dairy industry. The dairy negotiations were among the most difficult and contentious aspects of TPP talks, and dairy was one of the very last pieces of the negotiations wrapped up. Over the years-long duration of this major regional trading agreement, NMPF at each turn has worked aggressively to best position U.S. dairy interests.

As they did during the previous meeting of TPP Ministers in late July, NMPF staff and leadership actively participated in discussions with the negotiating team in Atlanta throughout the week in order to advocate strongly for America’s dairy farmers.

When the TPP effort began, it was little more than a façade for a free trade agreement with New Zealand, in light of the other 3 countries involved. Given the uniquely consolidated structure of New Zealand’s dairy industry, NMPF articulated strong concerns about the prospect of creating a one-way trade agreement with that country.

Eventually, in response to consistent recommendations from NMPF and others, countries with more significant dairy markets — Canada and Japan — were added to this agreement. Those decisions created new opportunities for our industry in TPP that previously had not been possible.   

We are still evaluating the extent of those new opportunities in the final package, as well as the degree of new domestic dairy competition that the U.S. government has agreed to with Australia and New Zealand. Given that dairy was concluded only Monday morning and involves a considerable degree of complexity across various countries and tariff lines, NMPF is withholding its judgment on the final agreement until we are able to review the specifics. 

“Based on information available to date, it appears that our industry has successfully avoided the type of disproportionate one-way street that we were deeply concerned could have resulted under this agreement,” said Jim Mulhern, President and CEO of NMPF. “New Zealand did not get the unfettered access to the U.S. market that it long sought; but Japan and Canada did not open their markets to the degree we sought. On an A through F grading scale for TPP, it was long clear the agreement would not score an A; the preliminary information suggests that the result is not an F. Our assessment of which of the remaining grades the final agreement merits will hinge on a careful analysis of its freshly agreed-upon dairy details.”

The strong and unified insistence from dairy farmers and processors across this country — aligned with dozens of members of Congress — reminded TPP parties throughout the course of negotiations of the risk of agreeing to a harmful dairy outcome. Fresh examples of that support in the final week included strong messages from House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) and committee member Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and committee ranking member Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), a TPP House dairy letter led by Rep. Reid Ribble (R-WI), a TPP letter on dairy and sugar issues led by Senate Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and a TPP letter on agricultural issues (including dairy) led by House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX).

Mulhern and NMPF Chairman Randy Mooney expressed deep appreciation for the strong interest and support from Capitol Hill in the outcome of the agreement’s dairy negotiations.

Read NMPF’s news release on the close of TPP negotiations.

After an intense week of final negotiations in Atlanta, representatives from the 12 countries involved in the Pacific Rim trade deal reached a final agreement early Monday morning, ending more than five years of work on the massive agreement known officially as the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Details of the final agreement are slowly emerging, and NMPF is examining them to assess the package’s overall impact on the U.S. dairy industry. The dairy negotiations were among the most difficult and contentious aspects of TPP talks, and dairy was one of the very last pieces of the negotiations wrapped up. Over the years-long duration of this major regional trading agreement, NMPF at each turn has worked aggressively to best position U.S. dairy interests.

As they did during the previous meeting of TPP Ministers in late July, NMPF staff and leadership actively participated in discussions with the negotiating team in Atlanta throughout the week in order to advocate strongly for America’s dairy farmers.

When the TPP effort began, it was little more than a façade for a free trade agreement with New Zealand, in light of the other 3 countries involved. Given the uniquely consolidated structure of New Zealand’s dairy industry, NMPF articulated strong concerns about the prospect of creating a one-way trade agreement with that country.

Eventually, in response to consistent recommendations from NMPF and others, countries with more significant dairy markets — Canada and Japan — were added to this agreement. Those decisions created new opportunities for our industry in TPP that previously had not been possible.   

We are still evaluating the extent of those new opportunities in the final package, as well as the degree of new domestic dairy competition that the U.S. government has agreed to with Australia and New Zealand. Given that dairy was concluded only Monday morning and involves a considerable degree of complexity across various countries and tariff lines, NMPF is withholding its judgment on the final agreement until we are able to review the specifics. 

“Based on information available to date, it appears that our industry has successfully avoided the type of disproportionate one-way street that we were deeply concerned could have resulted under this agreement,” said Jim Mulhern, President and CEO of NMPF. “New Zealand did not get the unfettered access to the U.S. market that it long sought; but Japan and Canada did not open their markets to the degree we sought. On an A through F grading scale for TPP, it was long clear the agreement would not score an A; the preliminary information suggests that the result is not an F. Our assessment of which of the remaining grades the final agreement merits will hinge on a careful analysis of its freshly agreed-upon dairy details.”

The strong and unified insistence from dairy farmers and processors across this country — aligned with dozens of members of Congress — reminded TPP parties throughout the course of negotiations of the risk of agreeing to a harmful dairy outcome. Fresh examples of that support in the final week included strong messages from House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) and committee member Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and committee ranking member Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), a TPP House dairy letter led by Rep. Reid Ribble (R-WI), a TPP letter on dairy and sugar issues led by Senate Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and a TPP letter on agricultural issues (including dairy) led by House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX).

Mulhern and NMPF Chairman Randy Mooney expressed deep appreciation for the strong interest and support from Capitol Hill in the outcome of the agreement’s dairy negotiations.

Read NMPF’s news release on the close of TPP negotiations. 

NMPF and the U.S. Dairy Export Council have told the U.S. Trade Representative that Russia’s ban on Western dairy imports, imposed in response to economic sanctions instituted after the invasion of Ukraine, is disrupting global dairy markets and appears to violate international trade rules. 

In comments filed with USTR late last month, NMPF and USDEC condemned the Russian ban and said it was forcing a shift of dairy supplies from Europe to other global markets, where competition for buyers is intensifying. In addition, they said, “Russia’s outright ban on products from the U.S. and other major suppliers for purely political reasons appears to be in violation of its World Trade Organization commitments.”

The two groups urged USTR to prepare for the ban to be lifted by establishing a government list of dairy facilities wanting to export to Russia. “The reality is that if the ban were lifted tomorrow, the U.S. dairy industry would still be cut off from this market due to the facility listing requirement Russia is maintaining in violation of its WTO accession commitments,” they said.

In separate comments on China’s compliance with WTO rules, NMPF and USDEC said some U.S. dairy companies still are unable to ship products to China because of Chinese registration requirements. They urged the Agriculture Department and the Food and Drug Administration to make complying with the Chinese rules a priority.

NMPF and USDEC also noted that negotiations are under way between China and the European Union over geographical indications. The two groups expressed “deep concern” about the impact of these negotiations on U.S. exports to China and particularly on opportunities to expand the range of products sold in the rapidly evolving Chinese market. 

Dairy producers have more than a month — until November 20 — to sign up for 2016 coverage under the dairy Margin Protection Program.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack extended the enrollment period under the dairy safety net program on September 22, a week after NMPF expressed concern that the original Sept. 30 deadline coincided with the fall harvest in many areas and also with the enrollment deadline for USDA’s Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage programs.

“A similar extension last fall greatly helped to boost enrollment in MPP for 2015,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern. “This extension should likewise enhance participation in the program for 2016.”

To help farmers make decisions, NMPF has updated tools at www.FutureforDairy.com, a website serving as a clearinghouse for MPP information. Included is a calculator allowing farmers to estimate future margins based on their forecasts of feed and milk prices.

MPP helps protect against the kind of catastrophic losses that many farmers experienced in 2009 and again in 2012. It allows farmers to insure the difference between milk prices and feed costs. Producers insure their operations on a sliding scale, deciding both how much of their production to cover and the level of margin to protect.

Slightly more than half of U.S. dairy operations signed up in the first MPP enrollment period last fall. The program has issued payments to those with the maximum $8 coverage in each of four bi-monthly coverage windows this year. Under the previous Milk Income Loss Contract program, no payments would have been authorized so far this year. 

Cooperatives Working Together member cooperatives last month captured 52 contracts to sell 13.104 million pounds of dairy products to customers in 19 countries. The 3.4 million pounds of American-type cheeses, 6.5 million pounds of butter and 3.2 pounds of whole milk powder will be shipped from September 2015 through March 2016.

These sales contracts bring the 2015 CWT totals through August to 47.1 million pounds of cheese, 25.7 million pounds of butter, and 35.6 million pounds of whole milk powder. In total, CWT assisted transactions will move the equivalent of 1.272 billion pounds of milk, on a milkfat basis, to customers in 35 countries on five continents. These totals are adjusted for contract cancellations.

Developed by NMPF, CWT is a voluntary export assistance program supported by dairy farmers producing 70 percent of the nation’s milk. By helping to move U.S. dairy products into world markets, CWT helps keep maintain and grow U.S. dairy farmers share of these expanding markets which, in turn, keeps dairy farmer milk prices at reasonable levels.