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Doud Takes Reins at NMPF

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

NMPF began its new year with a new President and Chief Executive Officer, as Gregg Doud succeeded outgoing leader Jim Mulhern on Jan. 1.

“As NMPF’s new president and CEO, I am duty-bound to defend this industry. And because of our farmer and co-op leadership and first-class staff, we defend it well,” Doud said in his first CEO’s Corner, published yesterday. “2024 is also exciting because of the great potential we in dairy have to take the initiative. We can attack as well as defend. 2024 is going to be a great year for this industry. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share in the leadership of this journey.”

Doud has served in numerous leadership roles in trade association and government work in his more than 30-year career in agricultural policy and economics, most recently at Aimpoint Research, a global intelligence firm specializing in agriculture and food. From 2018 to 2021 he served as Chief Agricultural Negotiator for the U.S. Office of the Trade Representative, appointed by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the Senate, where he led numerous successful efforts to create a fair, prosperous environment for U.S. agricultural exports, including the U.S.-China “Phase One” agreement and the USMCA negotiations.

Before that role, he served as president of the Commodity Markets Council, a trade association for commodities exchanges and industry counterparts; as senior professional staff on the Senate Agriculture Committee; and as chief economist for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, among other roles.

Mulhern leaves NMPF with the organization spearheading a once-a-generation update of federal milk marketing orders; with dairy farmers benefiting from a comprehensive federal safety net that features a suite of risk-management programs tailored to farms in all sizes and regions; agriculture-leading initiatives on sustainability and animal care; and undeniable progress in creating a more transparent marketplace for consumers amid the proliferation of plant-based dairy imposters, among other accomplishments.

FMMO Hearing, Now USDA’s Longest, Drags Into 2024

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

When USDA’s Federal Milk Marketing Order hearing reconvenes on Jan. 16, it will set a new record for the longest hearing in USDA history. NMPF’s proposals, however, have all been examined, with dairy cooperative leadership firmly stamped on testimony and cross-examination that will likely reach more than 15,000 pages by its expected conclusion on Groundhog Day, Feb. 2.

NMPF’s December focus was finishing region-by-region discussion on its final proposal, Proposal #19 to update Class I differentials. NMPF testimony concluded with analysis supporting the full range of NMPF proposals for comprehensive modernization offered by Dr. Scott Brown of the University of Missouri. Cooperative experts also explained both the need for updated differentials and the detailed analysis behind NMPF’s plan.

The final two weeks of presentations on the final three of 22 total proposals are scheduled for Jan. 16-19 and Jan. 29-Feb. 2, more than three months later than USDA’s originally projected completion date. The dragged-out hearing, largely because of an unexpectedly contentious atmosphere encouraged by exhaustive cross-examination by processor groups, may potentially cost farmers millions of dollars due to current inequities in the current, unmodernized system. Upon its conclusion, the next stage will be to create a legal brief, a written argument of NMPF’s case presented at the hearing to USDA using testimonies, exhibits, and cross-examinations.

For all the effort expended thus far, 2024 may be the most critical year of the entire FMMO modernization process that began with NMPF examination in 2021, as co-op leadership and farmer-owners lead the way in ensuring a final, adopted USDA proposal that heavily incorporates NMPF’s unanimously adopted, farmer-led, consensus and common-sense proposal for change.

House Overwhelmingly Backs Whole Milk in Schools

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The U.S. House of Representatives approved the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act on Dec. 13 with a commanding 330-99 margin, demonstrating compelling bipartisan support for expanding dairy in school meal nutrition programs.

The measure, led by Representatives GT Thompson, R-PA, and Kim Schrier, D-WA, expands the milk options schools can choose to include 2% and whole milk, in addition to the skim and 1% varieties currently allowed, increasing the number of tools schools can use to deliver vital nutrition to students by allowing more nutritious milk options schools can opt to serve.

“Expanding the milk schools can choose to serve to include 2% and whole is a common-sense solution that will help ensure kids have access to the same healthful milk options they drink at home,” said NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern upon House approval.

The House vote came after extensive Hill work and grassroots advocacy, including an NMPF call to action to its mailing list of dairy advocates that can be joined here. The legislation gained near-unanimous support among House Republicans and a majority of Democrats, generating significant momentum for Senate consideration this year.

NMPF has been committed to reinstating in schools the milk options removed in 2012, including 1% flavored milk and all varieties of 2% and whole. After years of working with members of Congress, meeting with USDA, and filing regulatory comments, 1% flavored milk was returned to school lunch menus on more permanent footing in 2022. NMPF has simultaneously built bipartisan support for 2% and whole milk options. NMPF also has been urging the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee to incorporate the robust body of scientific evidence showing the health benefits of dairy in all compositions, which should help expand dairy options in nutrition programs limited by dietary guidelines recommendations.

Galen Offers Preview of Upcoming Dairy Policy Developments in Early 2024

Posted on by Chris Galen

NMPF’s Chris Galen tells Dairy Radio Now listeners about the major national policy developments expected to top the headlines in early 2024.  These include efforts to fund the government, including agencies like the USDA.  Lawmakers also have to complete work on a new Farm Bill prior before the political focus shifts away from Washington toward the 2024 election campaign.

 

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More Protein, Better Policy: Welcome to 2024

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

Happy New Year, and what a year 2024 promises to be. Within dairy and throughout agriculture, the refrain that will be often repeated is that this will be the year of protein. In fact, it may be the first of many — if you look out over the next decade, the supply of animal protein in the world – that’s beef, pork, poultry, and dairy — comes nowhere near meeting the demand.

That means U.S. dairy’s emphasis on exports and our international competitiveness will certainly be an area of focus. Dairy farmers and their cooperatives are extremely well positioned to do this: we’re efficient, we can get high-quality products overseas competitively, and our processing capacity is expanding. Our innovation and technology in the dairy industry to expand international markets is second to none. NMPF can support these efforts by continuing our excellent partnership with the U.S. Dairy Export Council and by seeking sound policy that promotes the powerhouse potential of U.S. dairy.

Our Cooperatives Working Together Program will soon be in a position to bring significantly greater resources to bear in supporting market growth for U.S. dairy worldwide – just as our main competitors in New Zealand and Europe take a step back in large part due to regulatory constraints we in the United States have been able to avoid.

We also have room to grow our industry by increasing protein demand at home. A focus on the next generation is critical to achieving this. Last month, the House of Representatives took an important step toward boosting the next generation of milk drinkers by passing the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, which would get whole and 2% milk back on school lunch menus. The vote was 330-99, which gives us high hopes in the Senate next year. Meanwhile, we know that the science behind the health benefits of dairy in all its compositions is only becoming more compelling – and that puts us in a great position as the Dietary Guidelines for Americans Committee meets to craft new nutrition standards that guide federal programs.

More demand for dairy protein and better health, in America and worldwide. If that’s not enough to get an industry excited for the future, I don’t know what could be.

Another critical topic for this year is risk management. USDA’s Federal Milk Marketing Order hearing has been painfully slow, but it’s incredibly important for U.S. dairy producers. Our NMPF game plan and team effort has been outstanding thus far, and we will follow the hearing to its conclusion. We will be prepared to respond as needed to whatever USDA proposes and ensure that the path forward is what’s best for dairy.

A new Farm Bill is also on tap. We’re comfortable this time around with the fundamental structure of the dairy safety net, but there are always improvements to be made, and we’ll be seeking opportunities for positive change whenever they become available.

Of course, federal policy includes much more than just the Farm Bill. We’re excited to see the evolution of greenhouse gas regulation and carbon markets in ways that benefit dairy farmers. We are pushing for faster approvals for feed additives that reduce methane emissions and put us on a path toward consistently improving our environmental footprint. We’re excited to see billions of dollars of investment capital and new technology and innovation flow toward dairy, because it’s not just farmers who believe in this industry’s future – it’s some of the world’s brightest minds and savviest investors.

These are just some of the most immediate opportunities we can meet. Looking only slightly beyond 2024, we will again need to address tax policy and how we can stimulate investment and growth in all of agriculture and rural America. In addition to that are the ongoing, long-term fights where progress is slow, but real. Dairy is chipping away at the market share of plant-based imposter-dairy beverages and making headway with FDA in restricting the use of dairy terms. Our FARM program remains a world-leading customer assurance program that’s protecting this industry from the wildly inaccurate claims of our detractors and competitors.

As NMPF’s new president and CEO, I am duty-bound to defend this industry. And because of our farmer and co-op leadership and first-class staff, we defend it well. But 2024 is also exciting because of the great potential we in dairy have to take the initiative. We can attack as well as defend. 2024 is going to be a great year for this industry. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share in the leadership of this journey.

Gregg Doud

President & CEO, NMPF

 

 

NMPF’s Galen Highlights Key 2023 Policy Achievements for Dairy Community As Christmas Approaches

Posted on by Chris Galen

 

NMPF’s Chris Galen offers a Christmas-themed list of for listeners of Dairy Radio Now on several major achievements for dairy farmers:  updating the milk pricing system, improving the Farm Bill, and expanding milk options in schools.  He describes how NMPF successfully created momentum in the House of Representatives for a bill that would expand students’ milk options in schools.

NMPF’s Larson on Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act in Senate

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

NMPF’s Claudia Larson, Senior Director for Government Relations and Head of Nutrition Policy, discusses the way forward for the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act in the U.S. Senate in an interview with the National Association of Farm Broadcasters. “The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act is a common sense approach to address this under consumption of critical nutrients because it expands the options that schools can choose to serve to include two percent and whole milk,” she said.

 

CWT Assists with Six Million Pounds of Dairy Product Export Sales

Posted on by Khadija Gibson-White
ARLINGTON, VA – Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) member cooperatives accepted 34 offers of export assistance from CWT that helped them capture sales contracts for 6.0 million pounds (2,720 MT) of American-type cheese and 20,000 pounds (9 MT) of anhydrous milkfat. The product is going to customers in Asia, Middle East-North Africa and South America, and will be delivered from January through April 2024.

CWT-assisted member cooperative year-to-date export sales total 53.2 million pounds of American-type cheeses, 1.1 million pounds of butter (82% milkfat), 46,000 pounds of anhydrous milkfat, 39 million pounds of whole milk powder and 8.8 million pounds of cream cheese. The products are going to 24 countries in five regions. These sales are the equivalent of 871.9 million pounds of milk on a milkfat basis.

Assisting CWT members through the Export Assistance program positively affects all U.S. dairy farmers and cooperatives by fostering the competitiveness of U.S. dairy products in the global marketplace and helping member cooperatives gain and maintain world market share for U.S. dairy products. As a result, the program has helped significantly expand the total demand for U.S. dairy products and the demand for U.S. farm milk that produces those products.

The amounts of dairy products and related milk volumes reflect current contracts for delivery, not completed export volumes. CWT pays export assistance to the bidders only when export and delivery of the product is verified by required documentation.

 

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The Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) Export Assistance program is funded by voluntary contributions from dairy cooperatives and individual dairy farmers. The money raised by their investment is being used to strengthen and stabilize dairy farmers’ milk prices and margins.

 

NMPF Applauds House Increasing Kids’ Access to Critical Nutrition

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) emphatically commended the House of Representatives for taking a critical step toward improving child nutrition by approving the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act today with a commanding 330-99 bipartisan margin. The measure, led by Representatives GT Thompson, R-PA, and Kim Schrier, D-WA, expands the tools schools can use to deliver vital nutrition to students by increasing the variety of healthful milk options school can choose to serve.

“NMPF is delighted that the House approved the bipartisan Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act,” said Jim Mulhern, President & CEO of National Milk Producers Federation. “Milk’s unique nutritional profile gives it an unparalleled role in providing kids the nutrients they need. Expanding the milk schools can choose to serve to include 2% and whole is a common-sense solution that will help ensure kids have access to the same healthful milk options they drink at home. House passage is a critical step, and we urge the Senate to consider this bill immediately so it may be enacted into law.”

School milk, a mainstay of lunch menus for generations, plays an especially important role in improving nutrition security as an effective, inexpensive way of providing the nutrition kids need. NMPF has been tireless in its advocacy for reinstating whole milk, which was removed from school lunch menus in 2012. Since then, advancing science on the benefits of milk at all fat levels, as well as evidence of increased food waste from current limited choices, makes its return a top nutrition priority for schoolchildren, the families who serve nutritious fuller-fat varieties at home, and the school meal professionals who strive to effectively nourish those whom they serve.

The House-approved Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act will now be sent to the Senate, which already has its own version of the bill. The Senate measure is being led by Senators Roger Marshall, R-KS, and Peter Welch, D-VT, and has Republican, Democratic, and Independent cosponsors.

 

CWT Assists with 1.6 Million Pounds of Dairy Product Export Sales

Posted on by Khadija Gibson-White
ARLINGTON, VA – Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) member cooperatives accepted 13 offers of export assistance from CWT that helped them capture sales contracts for 1.2 million pounds (522 MT) of American-type cheese and 487,000 pounds (221 MT) of cream cheese. The product is going to customers in Asia and Middle East-North Africa, and will be delivered from December 2023 through February 2024.

CWT-assisted member cooperative year-to-date export sales total 47.2 million pounds of American-type cheeses, 1.1 million pounds of butter (82% milkfat), 26,000 pounds of anhydrous milkfat, 39 million pounds of whole milk powder and 8.8 million pounds of cream cheese. The products are going to 24 countries in five regions. These sales are the equivalent of 816 million pounds of milk on a milkfat basis.

Assisting CWT members through the Export Assistance program positively affects all U.S. dairy farmers and cooperatives by fostering the competitiveness of U.S. dairy products in the global marketplace and helping member cooperatives gain and maintain world market share for U.S. dairy products. As a result, the program has helped significantly expand the total demand for U.S. dairy products and the demand for U.S. farm milk that produces those products.

The amounts of dairy products and related milk volumes reflect current contracts for delivery, not completed export volumes. CWT pays export assistance to the bidders only when export and delivery of the product is verified by required documentation.

 

###

The Cooperatives Working Together (CWT) Export Assistance program is funded by voluntary contributions from dairy cooperatives and individual dairy farmers. The money raised by their investment is being used to strengthen and stabilize dairy farmers’ milk prices and margins.

 

Setting the template for U.S. dairy in 2024

Posted on by Alan Bjerga

By Tony Rice, Trade Policy Manager, National Milk Producers Federation

Tony Rice Headshot

While still historically strong, U.S. dairy exports this year are down from 2022’s record year, largely because of weaker global demand coupled with rebounded global supply. That doesn’t mean the U.S. isn’t making progress in overseas markets. Despite the headwinds, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) are moving toward boosting exports by successfully fighting against nontariff barriers in key markets and promoting the U.S. dairy industry.

Below are key trade policy efforts that affected the U.S. dairy industry in 2023, just a sample of NMPF and USDEC policy activities.

Working every angle to support trade

NMPF has been active this year across six continents, engaging governments and local organizations. At home, NMPF’s trade policy team filed six sets of confidential comments and seven additional sets of public comments while sending 17 letters to U.S. government agencies on issues ranging from trade negotiations to supply chain challenges.

NMPF and USDEC have also strengthened ties and forged new partnerships with local and regional organizations worldwide to improve dairy consumption while pursuing projects in the United Kingdom, China, Thailand, the Philippines, and Taiwan to boost U.S. dairy competitiveness.

Landmark common names bill introduced

For more than a decade, the European Union has imposed its geographical indication (GI) rules on countries around the world, limiting the ability of U.S. producers of common name cheeses — such as “parmesan” or “feta” — to sell their products worldwide.

Following advocacy led by NMPF, USDEC, and the Consortium for Common Food Names, as well as partners in the food and wine sectors, a bipartisan congressional group introduced the Safeguarding American Value-Added Exports (SAVE) Act in May. The SAVE Act would amend the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 to explicitly define “common names” and direct USDA to coordinate with the U.S. Trade Representative to proactively negotiate protections for common names.

Securing a critical cheesemaker right in federal court

European interests even tried to extend their GI campaign into the U.S. market when a European dairy organization attempted to trademark “gruyere.” NMPF and its partners fought this shameless attempt to confiscate a common cheese term and secured a final victory in March when a U.S. Court of Appeals found “gruyere” to be a generic term, upholding prior decisions. This final ruling sets a strong precedent for protecting common names and should discourage EU attempts to expropriate generic terms in the United States.

Championing expanded trade following USMCA ruling

NMPF and USDEC coordinated a November 27 industry letter to the President’s Export Council (PEC) supporting recommendations from NMPF member and PEC representative Land O’Lakes to bolster American agricultural trade by expanding market access opportunities and tackling nontariff trade barriers. The Council — the primary advisory committee on international trade — unanimously approved the recommendations on Nov. 29.

The vote followed a November 24 U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) dispute panel ruling that allows Canada to continue to restrict its dairy market access. The disappointing ruling followed years of NMPF advocacy on the issue. It is work that continues as NMPF urges the U.S. government to address Canada’s trade distorting practices.

Showcasing U.S. dairy to the world

For first time in 30 years, the World Dairy Summit took place in the United States, offering an opportunity to highlight the U.S. dairy industry’s world-class products, leadership on sustainability, and dedication to innovation to an audience of over 1,240 dairy professionals from more than 55 countries.

Hosted in Chicago in mid-October, NMPF played a leading role, co-chairing the conference and helping design the conference. Over the four days, attendees enjoyed dynamic programming, including opportunities to tour nearby farms.

This column originally appeared in Hoard’s Dairyman Intel on Dec. 11, 2023.