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House and Senate Ag Spending Measures Advance NMPF Priorities

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

NMPF backed important legislative provisions in the House and Senate versions of the fiscal year 2025 spending bills for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration.

The House Appropriations Committee approved its 2025 Agriculture-FDA bill on July 10. The measure includes key language to reverse the reduction in the maximum monthly milk allowance in USDA’s final foods package rule for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). WIC helps mothers and young children access essential nutrients they otherwise may lack; NMPF is concerned that the final rule will decrease this access by reducing the allowable milk maximum. NMPF is grateful to Representatives Elise Stefanik, R-NY, and Josh Harder, D-CA, for authoring this provision in the House bill.

Across the Capitol, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed its bill on July 11. The measure includes the Innovative FEED Act to enable FDA to review and approve animal feed ingredients using the agency’s Food Additive Petition pathway. The legislation would allow FDA to review animal feed additives, which are not drugs, in an efficient manner that would preserve animal, human, and environmental safety reviews. Doing so would better position U.S. dairy farmers to reduce enteric methane emissions quickly and proactively and remain globally competitive. NMPF commends Senators Tammy Baldwin, D-WI, and Jerry Moran, R-KS, for obtaining this critical language in the bill.

In addition, both chambers’ bills provide discretionary funding for multiple NMPF-backed programs, including the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network to provide stress assistance and support in rural communities and the Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives that fund direct technical assistance and grants to dairy stakeholders to further the development, production, marketing, and distribution of dairy products.

Republicans and Democrats will need to reach an agreement on overall spending levels for the fiscal year for the provisions of either version to become law. With the clock ticking on the Sept. 30 federal funding deadline, Congress will likely need to pass a short-term continuing resolution to avoid a government shutdown before the November elections.

Sustainability Can Work for U.S. Dairy, With Proper Attention to Profits

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The future of U.S. dairy lies in exports, which is taking up an increasing share of U.S. milk production. And as with all markets, pleasing the customer is a key to success; internationally, the perceived sustainability of a product is a key element of customer decision-making.

That can bring peril to dairy farmers, as anti-animal agriculture activists have unfairly made livestock a target worldwide over alleged issues with sustainability. Across the globe, dairy farms that are seen as environmentally unfriendly are being penalized by governments and facing pressure to change practices at the risk of added costs or lost business. Denmark, for example, has made headlines as the first country to tax livestock farmers for greenhouse gases emitted by cows, sheep and pigs.

But for American milk producers, armed with the right tools and appropriate public policy, sustainability can make farmers more money than it may cost them.

Sustainability pressures have been less intense in the United States, in large part because of the dairy industry’s proactive leadership via our industry Net Zero goals, our FARM Program stewardship, and our demonstrable record as a global leader in sustainability. While farmers elsewhere see threats to their production, U.S. farmers can tout their sustainability and increase their global share, showing how U.S. dairy can succeed – in fact, even thrive, in this environment.

But opportunities need to be underpinned by sound policy and solid economics. Because if the economics of sustainability don’t work, then sustainability efforts will fail.

One important step toward making this challenge work occurred in May, when FDA completed its review of the safety and effectiveness data of Bovaer, the first FDA-reviewed feed ingredient with a methane-reduction claim for lactating dairy cattle. This tool has been available to our competitors; FDA’s latest action now puts U.S. dairy on a more competitive playing field with its global counterparts.

After years of NMPF and industry advocacy, Bovaer will now be available to American dairy producers. That win creates opportunities: Implementing feed ingredient or feed additive interventions creates the potential to sell carbon credits or carbon reductions in carbon markets. It also paves the way for USDA conservation program support. NMPF member cooperatives and their industry partners were grateful that USDA awarded $89 million last year under the Regional Conservation Partnership Program to support farms in using Bovaer to reduce their methane emissions. Dairy hopes for more RCPP resources this year to boost farmer uptake nationwide.

Elanco, Bovaer’s manufacturer, estimates that use of its product has the potential to create an annual return of $20 or more per lactating cow, which would make the feed additive not only beneficial for the environment, but also for farmer profitability, not counting potential feed efficiency that can boost margins.

But obviously, one development alone isn’t the end-all toward making sustainability profitable. NMPF is also supporting passage of the Innovative FEED Act, a bipartisan measure introduced in both chambers of Congress that directs FDA to review enteric-reducing and other products using its Food Additive Petition process. Supporting IFEED would boost the economic sustainability of dairy producers by allowing more innovative products into the marketplace faster. NMPF has long advocated for faster review and approval of animal feed ingredients that can reduce enteric methane emissions.

NMPF is also advocating for passage of the bipartisan, bicameral EMIT LESS Act to help get these important feed additives into the hands of farmers quickly. This measure would better target popular voluntary conservation programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Conservation Stewardship Program toward farmer adoption of enteric emission-reducing products like Bovaer. As environmental markets continue to develop, this targeted support will be vital to helping farmers who choose to adopt these products in a financially viable and successful manner.

Regardless of the momentary political winds, sustainability is unlikely to subside as a political or marketplace concern. But American dairy producers can benefit, especially as competitors find themselves under even greater pressures and U.S. dairy farmers stand ready to meet global demand.

Exciting opportunities to create a more sustainable and profitable future for the dairy sector are emerging. With smart decisions and a farmer-focused approach, U.S. dairy can be the global leader, nourishing the world and boosting farmer fortunes at home.

Gregg Doud

President & CEO, NMPF

 

NMPF’s Bjerga on the Dietary Guidelines

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

NMPF’s Executive Vice President for Communications & Industry Relations Alan Bjerga discusses the need to support dairy in the next iteration of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Dairy products provide high-quality nourishment and serve a wide swathe of Americans, and the guidelines themselves need to be the product of a science-based, deliberative process, Bjerga said in an interview with RFD-TV.

Much Good, Some Surprises in FMMO Plan, NMPF’s Cain Says

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

Stephen Cain, senior director of economic research and analysis for the National Milk Producers Federation, said NMPF is “very pleased with the recommendation that USDA has come up with” for Federal Milk Marketing Order Modernization. “Fundamentally, USDA agreed with our premise and methodology for all the changes we were asking for,” said Cain in an interview with the National Association of Farm Broadcasters.

 

Economists Find Much to Like in USDA Pricing Plan

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

USDA’s plan for modernizing the Federal Milk Marketing Order system aligns well with the principles outlined in NMPF’s own proposals, NMPF economists Peter Vitaliano and Stephen Cain said in a Dairy Defined Podcast released today. Still, analysis is ongoing, and NMPF will be suggesting improvements during a public comment period that lasts through mid-September.

“It’s important that we have a national system that helps level the playing field across the country,” said Cain, NMPF’s senior director for economic research and analysis. “We do not want regulation to create winners and losers or incentivize actions that distort the marketplace or market dynamics in any way.

More on NMPF’s federal order efforts can be found on nmpf.org. You can find and subscribe to the Dairy Defined podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify under the podcast name “Dairy Defined.”

Media outlets may use clips from the podcast on the condition of attribution to the National Milk Producers Federation.

FARM Program Updates Animal Care Standards

Posted on by Chris Galen

NMPF’s Senior Director of FARM Animal Care, Beverly Hampton Phifer, tells Dairy Radio Now listeners about the series of changes being implemented this summer to the FARM Animal Care program.  The program is now initiating its 5th version, featuring updates to its standards that reflect best practices for dairy cattle.  The FARM program is also updating its newer, voluntary environmental and farm worker programs as those areas continues to draw attention from customer and consumers.

Dairy Data Delights, and Completes Your Summer Reading List

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

Impress your friends and dazzle your pub trivia team: Did you know that the average American worker only needs to work half as long to pay for a half gallon of ice cream as in 1960? Can you say, luxurious and affordable?

It’s in the numbers. Despite hourly wages that averaged $2.09 an hour the year John F. Kennedy was elected president (and both Joe Biden and Donald Trump were teenagers), the relative changes in wages and ice cream prices have made America’s favorite frozen dessert (Happy National Ice Cream Month) twice as affordable now, according to Labor Department data. What once took nearly 25 minutes of a U.S. worker’s hourly wage to buy takes less than 12 minutes now.

Butter holds a similar ratio, and whole milk and cheese affordability has also improved significantly. And still, some people long for the good old days.

You can find this information on page 85 of Dairy Data Highlights, a compendium of historical dairy statistics compiled by the NMPF/USDEC Dairy Economics Unit. The publication features facts on the evolution of farm sizes, milk production and dairy revenues, and the emphatic growth in the prominence of trade to the U.S. dairy economy. (Commercial dairy exports, 1985: 571 million pounds of milk equivalent. Commercial dairy exports, 2022: 40,581 million pounds.)

Suffice it to say, Dairy Data Highlights makes everyone’s summer beach reading list complete. And unlike current best sellers like “The Women,” or “On Call,” Dairy Data highlights is free – just download here.

That’s why the entire dairy community needs to know of this resource. See the rise in average herd sizes! Be wowed by the growth of processed gruyere exports! But mainly, know that this is out there. And use it as you need.

Our tech needs defense from cyberattacks

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

By Clay Detlefsen, Chief Counsel, National Milk Producers Federation

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) has worked with federal agencies on cyber issues for more than two decades. While the priorities and likely types of threats have shifted as technology has advanced, food and agriculture entities must take cybersecurity in all its forms seriously.

Last month, seven U.S. government agencies plus Canadian and British agencies worked together to create a fact sheet to address pro-Russian “hacktivist” activity among four of the nation’s 16 critical infrastructure sectors — water and wastewater, dams, energy, and food and agriculture.

Most people think of ransomware when they think of hackers. This involves people breaking into systems and demanding payment to unblock the data or system they have blocked. This is a very real concern, and the food processing industry alone has as many as 100 or more ransomware attacks per year. However, ransomware is not the food and agriculture sector’s only risk. This new government fact sheet focuses instead on industrial control systems that are attacked not to be extorted for ransom but rather to destroy the systems and negatively affect our nation’s critical infrastructure.

By exploiting software weaknesses, weak passwords, and passwords without two-factor authorization for internet-connected operational technology (OT) devices, pro-Russia hacktivists can cause disruptions that could range from mildly annoying to catastrophic. For example, already in 2024 pro-Russia hacktivists have manipulated access points known as human machine interfaces (HMIs) at water and wastewater systems in North America and Europe. The hackers altered machine settings, turned off alarm mechanisms, and changed administrative passwords to lock out operators.

While disruptions like these are — for now — smaller scale, a targeted attack that could disrupt or destroy enough infrastructure to cause chaos remains a real risk. For dairy, that risk is largely borne by processors, which have many more internet-connected systems than an average dairy farm. Still, the risk to farms rises as more dairies integrate high-tech and internet-connected devices into their operations. Processors and farms should be particularly diligent with any internet-connected devices that could cause serious harm if compromised, such as refrigeration equipment or rotary and robotic milking equipment.

The fact sheet linked above identifies numerous resources that help improve an entity’s cybersecurity, along with several recommendations that will help ward off ransomware attacks and attacks on OT. Among many holistic and system-wide mitigations, government agencies recommend three actions to take today if you have systems that may be open to attack:

  1. Immediately change all default passwords of OT devices.
  2. Limit the exposure of OT systems to the internet.
  3. Implement multifactor authentication for all access to the OT network.

NMPF will continue the dialog on this issue with federal partners and will keep the dairy industry informed. In the meantime, everyone is encouraged to share the government fact sheet with anyone who might find it useful.

This column originally appeared in Hoard’s Dairyman Intel on July 11, 2024.

2024 National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program Winners Awarded

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The NMPF Board of Directors selected five graduate students actively pursuing dairy related fields of research that benefit dairy cooperatives and producers to receive scholarships as part of the 2024 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program. Winners were announced June 4, at NMPF’s Board of Directors meeting in Arlington, VA.

Winners include:

Augustin Olivo, a doctoral candidate in Animal Science at Cornell University, where he is a part of the Nutrient Management Spear Program (NMSP). Olivo’s research and extension work focus is on evaluating and disseminating system analysis tools and performance indicators that support efforts to improve environmental sustainability in dairy systems for New York producers.

Megan Lauber is pursuing her doctorate at University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she received her Master’s in Dairy Science under the advisement of Dr. Paul Fricke. Her dissertation focuses on integrating basic physiology, management practices and economics to optimize the use of sexed semen in dairy herds.

Grant Finchman is a Master of Science candidate in Ruminant Nutrition at University of Nebraska- Lincoln. His research involves the impact of feeding dried distiller grains with solubles to lactating dairy cattle, looking at whole animal energy utilization and manure biogas production.

Ana Beatriz Montevecchio Bernardino is a second-year doctoral student in the Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences at the University of Florida. Her research focuses on heat abatement strategies in dairy calves, udder health and pharmaceutical development. More specifically, her current research investigates the effect of a novel non-steroidal anti-inflammatory formulation on welfare of Holstein cows challenged with E. coli.

Lynn Olthof is a doctoral candidate under Dr. Barry Bradford studying dairy management at Michigan State University. Her research studies the economic implications of dairy farm management decisions.

NMPF’s Board of Directors offers scholarships each year to qualified graduate students enrolled in master’s or doctoral programs who are actively pursuing dairy-related fields of research that are of immediate interest to NMPF member cooperatives.

The scholarship program meaningfully assists graduate students and promotes research that benefits the entire dairy community. Donate today to support the National Leadership Scholarship Program.

FARM Highlights NMPF Outreach in June

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

NMPF outreach to the dairy community was highlighted by the FARM team in June, as staff shared expertise across the industry.

FARM’s senior director of animal care, Beverly Hampton Phifer, presented Managing an Animal Care Crisis June 5 at the Dairy Welfare Symposium in Kansas City, MO. Dr. Valerie Smith, with Food Safety Net Services, and Hampton Phifer co-presented the efforts of FARM and implementation of the Animal Care Concern Protocol.

Emily Yeiser Stepp, FARM’s executive director, attended the American Dairy Science Association conference June 16-19 in West Palm Beach, FL. Yeiser Stepp presented with Chase DeCoite, Vice President of Food Industry Relations for Dairy Management, Inc., on June 18.  The pair’s presentation, Demonstrating U.S. Dairy’s Commitment to Animal Care, discussed how FARM supports continuous improvement on all U.S. dairy farms and understanding the supply chain’s interest in animal care.

Nicole Ayache, Chief Sustainability Officer at NMPF, discussed FARM’s Environmental Stewardship Version 3 upcoming launch at the Innovation Center for US Dairy Board of Directors meeting on June 27. The Version 3 update is two years in the making, surrounding a new evaluation tool, the Ruminant Farms Systems model (RuFaS), which will support dairy industry efforts to reach GHG neutral by 2050 as well as to respond to growing customer requests.

Other staff highlights included Will Loux, NMPF’s senior vice president for global economic affairs, speaking on the state of the dairy industry to Dairy Management Inc. officers and the Innovation Center in Rosemont, IL, giving an overview of long-term trends of the industry in production, supply and demand.

NMPF Grows Latin American Network

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

Strengthening its trade and dairy priorities in Latin America, NMPF and USDEC signed a June 4 memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Colombian Association of Dairy Industry (Asoleche).

The agreement details objectives that the U.S. and Colombian industries will undertake to improve knowledge sharing and eliminate trade barriers between the two countries. The MOU complements similar agreements USDEC and NMPF have made throughout Latin America, including with Sociedad Rural Argentina, the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the Chilean Federacion Nacional de Productores de Leche (Fedeleche).

Gregg Doud, president and CEO of NMPF, said, “The U.S. and Colombian dairy industries share many of the same values and priorities. We’re excited to work alongside Asoleche to promote positive, sound policies that build a stronger dairy industry in the Americas and internationally.”