Uncategorized

NMPF Farmers Advocate for Dairy, Approve Trade Initiative at Board Meeting

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

NMPF members approved a new initiative to boost dairy exports and welcomed a new cooperative as well as new farmer-leaders into the fold at the National Milk Producers Federation’s Board of Directors meeting June 10-11.

NMPF’s board meeting brought together more than 100 farmers and dairy-cooperative leaders at the nation’s largest dairy farmer trade organization, which serves as the policy voice for milk producers and the cooperatives they own in Washington.

“If you imagine that on top of that the millions of people who buy something we touch every day with the products, the nutritious products that we produce, not just at dinner, not just at breakfast, but all day long, because of what you can turn dairy into, it’s a pretty amazing story, really,” said NMPF Board Chairman Randy Mooney, a farmer from Rogersville, MO, in remarks at the meeting. “We put some of the most nourishing products there are into consumers every day, globally, and that’s something that I think we can all be proud of.”

The board also voted to implement a new member-funded export assistance program called NEXT , starting today.  NEXT, which stands for NMPF EXport and Trade, is the successor to the Cooperatives Working Together program.

A majority of the milk produced by NMPF members supports the NEXT program, with a 2 cent/cwt contribution through 2028. The NEXT program focuses on supporting U.S. dairy exports in key markets around the world to help drive global demand for U.S. dairy products and support U.S. dairy prices.

Two new directors and one new cooperative member also were approved. Joining as new board members are:

  • Corey Gillins, Dairy Farmers of America
  • Tim Kuenzi, Darigold
  • Brenda Dehart, Foremost Farms

NMPF also approved a new co-op member, Lanco-Pennland Cooperative, based in Hagerstown, MD. Lanco-Pennland produces roughly 400 million pounds of milk annually and is a leading East Coast milk marketer.

The meeting also featured remarks from Reps. Dusty Johnson, R-SD, David Valadao, R-CA, and Tony Wied, R-WI.

The meeting was held in conjunction with the Young Cooperators (YC) Dairy Policy and Legislative Forum, which brought together young dairy leaders from 15 states for two days of education and advocacy on Capitol Hill. YCs discussed key dairy priorities directly with members of Congress and staffs to advocate for the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, agricultural labor reform and strong dairy trade policies.

Also in conjunction with the meeting, The National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Program opened nominations for its annual FARM Excellence Awards, which recognizes farmers, cooperatives and processors that provide consumers with safe, wholesome milk with integrity. Nominations may be submitted via an online form until Aug. 4.

NMPF’s Galen Outlines Complaint About Country Crock Fake “Butter”

Posted on by Chris Galen

NMPF’s senior vice president Chris Galen explains for listeners of Dairy Radio Now why the American Butter Institute, which NMPF manages, recently filed a complaint with the Food and Drug Administration about the labeling of Country Crock’s “dairy free butter.” Galen, who is the Executive Director of ABI, says that a plant-based seed oil spread is by law not real butter, and shouldn’t be allowed to disguise itself as such.

NMPF Applauds Senate Reconciliation Dairy Provisions, Urges Congress Toward Final Action

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The National Milk Producers Federation, the largest U.S. dairy-farmer organization, commended the U.S. Senate for the bill’s dairy and agriculture provisions, which will create greater financial certainty for producers. NMPF is hopeful that the House will take up the bill and get it to the president’s desk quickly.

“Dairy farmers are grateful for legislation that will create several key opportunities for dairy,” said Gregg Doud, NMPF president and CEO in a statement. “Following last month’s successful vote in the House, we are excited that the Senate’s legislation also positions these investments to benefit dairy farmers and the cooperatives they own. We hope they are enacted into law as swiftly as possible.”

Congress is attempting to pass the measure prior to the July 4 Congressional recess.

The Senate Agriculture Committee’s portion of the bill includes numerous NMPF-backed requests that would strengthen dairy and farm policy, including:

  • Renewing the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program through 2031; updating DMC’s production history calculation to be based on the highest production year of 2021, 2022, or 2023; and extending the ability for producers to receive a 25% premium discount for locking in their coverage for the duration of the bill;
  • Providing mandatory funding for USDA to conduct mandatory dairy processing cost surveys every two years to provide better data to inform future make allowance conversations;
  • Folding remaining Inflation Reduction Act conservation dollars into the farm bill baseline, resulting in increased long-term funding for popular, oversubscribed programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program;
  • Providing new trade promotion funding based on current programs that return well over $20 in export revenue for every dollar invested in the programs; and
  • Increasing funding for animal health programs that help to prevent, control, and eradicate animal diseases, such as the outbreak of H5N1 in dairy cattle.

The Senate Finance Committee’s portion of the bill, released on June 16, makes permanent the Section 199A tax deduction, enabling dairy farmer-owned cooperatives to continue either passing the deduction back to their farmer owners or reinvesting it in their cooperatives.

NMPF is grateful to House and Senate committee leaders, including Agriculture Committee Chairmen GT Thompson, R-PA, and John Boozman, R-AR and tax-writing committee chairs Rep. Jason Smith, R-MO, and Sen. Mike Crapo, R-ID, and other members who have authored these provisions in the bill moving toward President Trump’s desk.

In Washington, Change is a Challenge

Posted on by Rachel Ravencraft

As the initial flurry of activity in the new administration and Congress moves into the heat of summer in Washington, the challenges and fault lines that come with addressing major issues including labor, trade and taxes are becoming increasingly clear.  

This should come as a surprise to no one.  

To put it plainly, change is difficult. Movement on issues that have seen decades of gridlock and tinkering along the edges because of a lack of political will are especially hard. This isn’t a secret, and the turbulence agriculture policy is seeing is likely to continue for some time. While that’s occurring, it will be important for everyone in dairy and agriculture to remain focused on advancing our industry and ensuring that we embrace the current environment for its opportunities while remaining vigilant among its threats.  

Take labor, for example. The balance between the administration’s goals of ensuring border security and deporting people who are not legally residing in the United States with ensuring the economic health of rural communities by maintaining an adequate workforce for farms is clearly recognized by the president and by USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins. We are grateful for the president’s sympathy for farmers and the secretary’s work on their behalf — still, but more importantly, his continued willingness to tackle complex policy topics that have languished for decades. 

That’s why we agree with Jim Boyle, the vice-chairman of NMPF member co-op the United Dairymen of Arizona who we recently profiled in our Farmer Focus feature series. “The president is right about securing the border, but any enforcement action needs to go hand-in-hand with a labor reform package,” he said.  

We continue to work for either a change to the current H2-A farmworker visa that will accommodate dairy’s year-round nature or, in the absence of that, a new guestworker program that meets dairy’s needs. In the meantime, dairy farmers who are meeting requirements for worker documentation shouldn’t be living with worries about immigration raids on their farms. It isn’t good to have open borders and criminals crossing over it. But it’s also not good for dairy farmers, or rural communities, to be deprived of hard-working, law-abiding labor that’s paid well and willing to do work native-born Americans have always been less willing to do, caring for animals around the clock and ensuring a steady supply of nutritious dairy products for Americans and the world.  

Similarly, efforts to dramatically reset trade relationships worldwide are inevitably meeting challenges. But for all the concern over tariffs, it’s also important to remember that, through April, the value of U.S. dairy exports in 2025 is actually higher than it was the previous year. While no one is claiming that everything is roses on the trade front, it’s critical to remember that U.S. dairy continues to compete successfully and build relationships with global partners amid the day-to-day noise of headlines.  

And finally, policy advancements are happening domestically. The Senate is poised to pass its own version of The Big, Beautiful Bill that the House approved in May. The differences between the two chambers are significant, and negotiations over details may take maddeningly long. But with major tax increases looming in 2026 if Congress doesn’t get its work done in time, the incentives to complete a package are overwhelming. And both versions contain significant wins for dairy farmers, from the extension of the Dairy Margin Coverage Program through 2031 to making permanent the Section 199(A) tax deduction that helps cooperatives stay competitive.  

Rome wasn’t built in a day, decades of unfair trade policies won’t evaporate overnight, and farm-labor issues that haven’t been taken seriously since the last major legislation in 1986 won’t be solved in one growing season. But dairy will survive, and can thrive, as these critical questions gain serious attention and a genuine desire for answers. We are in for a hot summer and a challenging fall. But we can, and will, come out ahead.  

Gregg Doud

President & CEO, NMPF

 

FARM Program Offers HR and Safety Support

Posted on by Rachel Ravencraft

By Sage Saffran, Manager, Sustainability Initiatives

Dairy owners and managers are often looking for ways to attract and retain employees. That’s why the National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Workforce Development Program offers resources to support farms in recruiting, training and managing workers. The program equips dairy owners and managers with tools to enhance safe and thriving work environments.

Developed in consultation with professional and academic experts, farmers, and cooperative and processor staff, the program highlights best practices in human resources (HR) and safety. To support implementation, the program offers a wide variety of fillable templates, fact sheets, self-assessments and manuals.

The fillable templates cover topics from job applications to performance reviews, training logs and more. All templates are available to download for free in English and Spanish. Dairy owners and managers are encouraged to tailor the templates to their specific needs. State legal fact sheets, which are updated annually, summarize applicable state laws and regulations for dairy farms in plain language. FARM WFD offers reference manuals for both HR and safety topics, in addition to a fully customizable employee handbook.

Retaining labor is critically important, and prioritizing efforts to implement best practices in HR and safety can help with that. “FARM Workforce Development gave us an opportunity to review our existing safety and training protocols and identify areas we could strengthen,” Newmont Farm owner Will Gladstone said in a FARM Impact story. “It’s been helpful for both managers and employees to have written documentation of safety procedures and employee resources.” Gladstone shared his experience as a FARM WFD participant in FARM’s Impact Story feature, which aims to highlight farmers’ experiences with the program.

Additionally, FARM WFD uses an on-farm second-party evaluation tool to help farms learn about HR and safety management best practices, identify which practices will be most useful to implement on their farm, and track improvement over time.

The program area launched Version 2 in July 2024, updating the evaluation tool used to voluntarily assess and encourage adoption of HR and safety best practices on-farm. In Version 2, the evaluation was restructured to better group questions of similar themes and contains seven additional questions to further strengthen the tool surrounding communication and performance management. 475 Version 2 evaluations were completed in 2024 through 13 participating cooperatives and processors.

The FARM WFD program continues to update its suite of resources, including annual updates of its state legal fact sheets.

To learn more about FARM WFD, visit nationaldairyfarm.com.

This column originally appeared in Hoard’s Dairyman Intel on June 30, 2025.

Federal Regulations Evolving Fast

Posted on by Rachel Ravencraft

The regulatory climate in Washington is shifting in unprecedented ways, requiring quick responses and an eye for opportunities, NMPF regulation experts said in a Dairy Defined podcast released today.

The pace of evolution is “Intense, insane,” said Clay Detlefsen, NMPF’s Senior Vice President for Regulatory and Environmental Affairs. “It changes daily. It’s full of unknowns, and it’s moving forward at an absolutely crazy pace. We don’t know what to expect tomorrow or the next day or the day after that, but things are indeed happening.”

Joining Detlefsen to discuss what dairy farmers, processors and consumers should anticipate, from milk labeling to MAHA, are Dr. Jamie Jonker, NMPF’s Chief Science Officer, and Director of Regulatory Affairs Miquela Hanselman.

To hear more Dairy Defined podcasts, you can find and subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music under the podcast name “Dairy Defined.”

NMPF’s Bleiberg Assesses Latest Developments in Immigration Policy on Dairy Radio Now

Posted on by Chris Galen

NMPF Executive Vice President Paul Bleiberg explains for listeners of Dairy Radio Now what to make of conflicting statements issued in the past week by Trump Administration officials regarding how the federal government will enforce immigration laws on farms and agricultural businesses.

NMPF Supports Senate Ag Committee Farm Policy Investments

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The National Milk Producers Federation today commended the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee for including important resources in their budget reconciliation proposal that would boost rural economies and support unmet needs.

“Dairy farmers are grateful to Chairman John Boozman and his committee for putting forward legislation that will create several key opportunities for dairy,” said Gregg Doud, president and CEO of NMPF. “Following last month’s successful vote in the House, we are excited that this legislation positions these investments strongly in the Senate to benefit dairy farmers and the cooperatives they own.”

The Senate reconciliation proposal released yesterday would fund the Dairy Margin Coverage program through 2031, provide resources for mandatory USDA dairy manufacturing cost surveys every two years, and offer long-term support for critical trade promotion, conservation, research, and animal health programs.

NMPF Farmers Advocate for Dairy, Approve Trade Initiative at Board Meeting

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

Dairy farmers from across the nation approved a new initiative to boost dairy exports and welcomed a new cooperative member as well as new farmer-leaders at the National Milk Producers Federation’s Board of Directors meeting, which concluded today.

“If you imagine that on top of that the millions of people who buy something we touch every day with the products, the nutritious products that we produce, not just at dinner, not just at breakfast, but all day long, because of what you can turn dairy into, it’s a pretty amazing story, really,” said NMPF Board Chairman Randy Mooney, a farmer from Rogersville, MO, in remarks at the meeting. “We put some of the most nourishing products there are into consumers every day, globally, and that’s something that I think we can all be proud of.”

NMPF’s board meeting brought together more than 100 farmers and dairy-cooperative leaders at the nation’s largest dairy farmer trade organization, which serves as the policy voice for milk producers and the cooperatives they own in Washington.

The meeting was held in conjunction with NMPF’s annual fly-in of its Young Cooperators, who met with members of Congress to discuss pressing dairy concerns and received a U.S. Capitol tour from Rep. Adam Gray, D-CA; it also featured remarks from Reps. Dusty Johnson, R-SD, David Valadao, R-CA, and Tony Wied, R-WI.

The board voted to implement a new member-funded export assistance program called NEXT, starting July 1.  A majority of the milk supplied to consumers worldwide by NMPF members is supporting the NEXT program with a 2 cent/cwt contribution through 2028. The NEXT program will focus on supporting U.S. dairy exports in key markets around the world, including Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia.

The board also welcomed two new directors and one new cooperative member. Joining as new board members are:

  • Corey Gillins, Dairy Farmers of America
  • Tim Kuenzi, Darigold
  • Brenda Dehart, Foremost Farms

NMPF’s newest member, approved today, is Lanco-Pennland Cooperative, based in Hagerstown, MD. Lanco-Pennland produces roughly 400 million pounds of milk annually and is a leading East Coast milk marketer.

The Young Cooperators (YC) Dairy Policy and Legislative Forum brought together young dairy leaders from 15 states for two days of education and advocacy on Capitol Hill, discussing key dairy priorities directly with members of Congress and staffs to advocate for the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, agricultural labor reform and strong dairy trade policies.

Also in conjunction with the meeting, The National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Program opened nominations for its annual FARM Excellence Awards, which recognizes farmers, cooperatives and processors that provide consumers with safe, wholesome milk with integrity. Nominations may be submitted via an online form by Aug. 4.

NMPF Names Four Dairy Scholarship Winners

Posted on by Jessi-Ryah Cordova

Four graduate students researching in areas that benefit dairy cooperatives and farmers are receiving scholarships as part of the 2025 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program, with one being honored through a scholarship created this year. Recipients include:

Dallas Soffa, a doctoral candidate in Physiology of Reproduction in Animal Science at Texas A&M. Soffa’s research explores the hormonal influence on reproductive microbiota and immune cell signaling in cattle.

Margaret Costello, a doctoral candidate in Animal & Dairy Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research focuses on integrating emerging sequencing technology and non-invasive sampling techniques with rumen microbiome research to address key industry concerns.

Marina Rocha Dorella, a master’s student in Animal Science at the University of Minnesota. Her research explores enhancing dairy industry sustainability through precision dairy technology, more specifically, optimizing hyperketonemia treatment efficiency and labor allocation.

The committee also selected a student to receive the newly created Dr. Peter Vitaliano Legacy Scholarship. The scholarship, created in March, supports individuals who demonstrate a passion for the industry through community engagement, academic interests and advocacy. This year’s scholarship was awarded to:

Maria Belen Ugarte Marin, a doctoral candidate in Veterinary Medical Sciences at the University of Florida studying the identification of detrimental milking characteristics and their association with dairy farm performance. Maria’s dedication to mentorship, serving as a teaching assistant, and overall passion for supporting the next generation embodies the vision for dairy leadership by Dr. Vitaliano, who retired from NMPF last year after nearly four decades as an economist with the organization.

“Congratulations to each recipient of this year’s National Dairy Leadership Scholarships,” said NMPF President and CEO Gregg Doud. “We are proud to continue to focus on the future of the industry by supporting these young professionals in their endeavors. Farmers can be confident in their investment in education and the next generation of dairy leaders.”

NMPF’s Board of Directors confirmed the recipients as part of NMPF’s Board of Directors meeting held in Arlington, VA, June 10-11. To learn more about and contribute to the NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship program, please visit the scholarship website.

Preparing the next generation

Posted on by Rachel Ravencraft

By Theresa Sweeney-Murphy, Senior Director, Communications & Outreach

This year marks a major milestone for the National Milk Producers Federation’s (NMPF) National Young Cooperators (YC) Program as it celebrates its 75th anniversary. Young dairy farmer leaders from across the country are gathered this week in Washington, D.C. to engage with lawmakers, advocate for key dairy issues and continue building the next generation of cooperative leadership.

The multi-day program is a hallmark event for NMPF, providing young cooperators with in-depth insights into current policy issues from subject matter experts. Attendees also receive training in relationship-building with lawmakers, message development and effective communication strategies — skills they then have the opportunity to apply during meetings with members of Congress and their staffs on Capitol Hill.

Drawing from their own experiences, young cooperators will highlight the effects of policy action — and inaction — on their farms during meetings with policymakers. A key priority this year is pushing for agricultural labor reform that provides dairy farmers with access to a stable, legal workforce. They will also advocate for the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, underscoring the nutritional benefits of whole milk for children, and champion efforts to expand reliable export markets for U.S. dairy products.

Now celebrating the 75th year, the YC Program remains firmly rooted in the cooperative values that bring the dairy community together. Since 1950, it has helped shape the next generation of leaders by offering year-round leadership training and educational opportunities for young farmers looking to step into greater roles — on their farms, in their cooperatives, and throughout the industry.

This week’s event reinforces the critical role the YC Program plays in dairy farmer advocacy. As challenges grow more complex, having well-prepared, informed young leaders at the table is more important than ever. Their voices bring real-world insight to policy discussions, ensuring that dairy farmers’ needs are heard and understood by policymakers. Their involvement is essential to shaping sound policies and securing a strong future for the industry.

Beyond this week’s Dairy Policy and Legislative Forum in Washington, the YC Program has more in-person events planned for 2025. Educational sessions will be held October 2 and 3 at World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis., followed by the annual Leadership and Development Program, taking place November 9 to 12 in Arlington, Texas.

The National YC Program is open to dairy farmers under the age of 45 who own or work on a farm that’s part of an NMPF member cooperative. To stay informed about upcoming events and opportunities, click here and check the National YC Program box. You can also reach out to your cooperative to learn more about getting involved.

This column originally appeared in Hoard’s Dairyman Intel on June 9, 2025.